TheBig Blog

Uncle David's Obituary

Mr. Moore was born June 11, 1925 and reared on a tobacco and livestock farm in the Bushy Fork Community of Person County, North Carolina. Mr. Moore passed away June 1, 2007 at Wake Medical Center. Mr. Moore was preceded in death by his parents, W. Knox and Zelma Whitefield Moore; sisters, Mabel Hester, Cornelia Wilkerson, Vera White, Elva Beaner, Loyd Mitchell and Mary Ruth Gentry; brothers, Walter L., Elbert L., Wayne K. and James Earl Moore.

He graduated from Bushy Fork Elementary School, Roxboro High School and NC State College. Mr. Moore was involved in the insurance industry in the 50's, employed by the State Dept. of Insurance from 1958 to 1972 and by the State Retirement System under the Dept. of State Treasurer from 1972 to 1987, when he retired. Mr. Moore was a member of the Fuquay-Varina Jaycees and the Fuquay-Varina Lions Club. He was a Past Master of the Fuquay Masonic Lodge and a member of the Sudan and Amran Shrine Temple.

Mr. Moore is survived by his wife of 56 years, Gene Blanchard Moore; son, David Ray Moore, Jr. and wife, Jeannie McDowell Moore; grandsons, Harrison Connor Moore and Carson Hayden Moore, granddaughter, Kendall Adrianna Moore; sister, Eva Kate Cox and brother, John Henry Moore; and many nieces and nephews.

The family will receive friends today from 6:00-8:30 p.m. at Williford Funeral Home Chapel.

Funeral service will be Monday, June 4th, 11:00 a.m. at First United Methodist Church, Main Street, Fuquay Varina, NC. Burial will follow at Greenlawn Memorial Gardens on 55 West, Fuquay Varina, NC.

Flowers are welcomed or donations may be made to, First United Methodist Church, Fuquay-Varina.

Services entrusted to Williford Funeral Home, Fuquay-Varina.

Though Uncle David may have appreciated the linked spam, I do not, and therefore have closed this post to comment. 9 November 2007

Aunt Loyd's Obituary

ROXBORO - Loyd Moore Mitchell, 88, formerly of North Main Street, Roxboro, Morrow, Ohio, and The Heritage, Raleigh, died Friday, December 8, 2006, at Rex Healthcare Hospital. Born in Person County, Mrs. Mitchell was the daughter of the late Walter Knox and Zelma Whitefield Moore, and wife of the late George Edward Crumpton Sr. and Stewart Clyde Mitchell.

Mrs. Mitchell was the former operator of Loyd's, an apparel shop in Roxboro, and former manager of Tarheel Chevrolet during World War II. She was a Worthy Matron in the Roxboro Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star and in the Morrow, OH Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star.

Mrs. Mitchell was a member of Long Memorial United Methodist Church. She was also the head bookkeeper at Carolina Willys Jeep in Greensboro. Mrs. Mitchell was a corporate secretary with Chevrolet Motor Division in Cincinnati, Ohio. With her husband, she ran a drive-in and service station in Morrow, Ohio. She was also president of the Band Booster Club in Morrow.

Mrs. Mitchell is survived by her children, Dr. George Edward Mitchell, of Birmingham, AL, Edgar Knox Mitchell, of Rockport, Maine, and Phyllis Susan Mitchell, of Dillingham, Ark.; two brothers, David Ray Moore, of Fuquay-Varina and John Henry Moore ,of Durham; one sister, Eva Kate Moore Cox, of Myrtle Beach, S.C.; five grandchildren, David Mitchell, Jimmy Mitchell, Martha Mitchell, Michelle Mitchell and Noel Mitchell.

Funeral services will be held 3 p.m. Wednesday at the Brooks & White Chapel by the Rev. David Chambers. The family will receive friends at the Brooks & White Funeral Home after the service. Graveside services will be held 1 p.m. Thursday at Monte Vista Park in Bluefield, W.Va.

Pallbearers will be grandsons, David Mitchell and Jimmy Mitchell and nephews.

Memorials may be made to the Order of the Eastern Star Scholarship Fund, c/o Roberta Hanna, Secretary Roxboro Chapter.

Grandpa's Hands

My aunt Ellen sent this to me, telling how she thought of her daddy (my granddaddy White) when she read it. So did I. Vera's here.

Grandpa, some ninety plus years, sat feebly on the patio bench. He didn't move, just sat with his head down staring at his hands.

When I sat down beside him he didn't acknowledge my presence and the longer I sat, I wondered if he was okay.

Finally, not really wanting to disturb him, but wanting to check on him at the same time, I asked him if he was okay. He raised his head and looked at me and smiled. "Yes, I'm fine, thank you for asking," he said in a clear strong voice.

"I didn't mean to disturb you, grandpa, but you were just sitting here staring at your hands and I wanted to make sure you were OK," I explained to him.

"Have you ever looked at your hands" he asked. "I mean really looked at your hands?"

I slowly opened my hands and stared down at them. I turned them over, palms up and then palms down. No, I guess I had never really looked at my hands, as I tried to figure out the point he was making.

Grandpa smiled and related this story:

Stop and think for a moment about the hands you have, how they have served you well throughout your years. These hands, though wrinkled, shriveled and weak have been the tools I have used all my life to reach out and grab and embrace life. They braced and caught my fall when, as a toddler, I crashed upon the floor. They put food in my mouth and clothes on my back. As a child, my mother taught me to fold them in prayer. They tied my shoes and pulled on my boots.

They held my rifle and wiped my tears when I went off to war. They have been dirty, scraped and raw, swollen and bent. They were uneasy and clumsy when I tried to hold my newborn son. Decorated with my wedding band, they showed the world that I was married and loved someone special. They wrote the letters home and trembled and shook when I buried my parents and spouse, and walked my daughter down the aisle. Yet, they were strong and sure when I dug my buddy out of a foxhole and lifted a plow off of my best friends foot.

They have held children, consoled neighbors and shook in fists of anger when I didn't understand. They have covered my face, combed my hair and washed and cleansed the rest of my body. They have been sticky and wet, bent and broken, dried and raw. And, to this day, when not much of anything else of me works really well, these hands hold me up, lay me down and again continue to fold in prayer. These hands are the mark of where I've been and the ruggedness of my life.

But more importantly, it will be these hands that God will reach out and take when He leads me home. And, with my hands, He will lift me to His side and there I will use these hands to touch the face of Christ.

I will never look at my hands the same again. But I remember God reached out, when the time was right, and took my grandpa's hands and led him home. When my hands are hurt or sore, or when I stroke the face of my children and wife, I think of grandpa. I know he has been stroked and caressed and held by the hands of God. I, too, want to touch the face of God and feel his hands upon my face.

Comments disabled 16 August 2007

Aunt Mary Ruth's Obituary

Timberlake, NC - Mary Ruth Moore Gentry, 76, formerly of 286 Robert Gentry Rd., died Sunday, March 26, 2006, at the Roxboro Nursing Center following an extended illness. Born in Person County, she was the daughter of the late Walter Knox and Zelma Whitfield Moore. Mrs. Gentry was a homemaker and part-time secretary for Grower�s Warehouse. She was a former 4H Leader and a member of the Home Demonstration Club. She loved to sew and was a member of Helena United Methodist Church. Mrs. Gentry was also very involved with the VFW Women�s Auxillary.

Mrs. Gentry is survived by her husband, Robert A. Gentry; four children and their spouses, Kathy G. Cates and husband Richard, of Hurdle Mills, Bobby Gentry and Tommy Gentry and wife Patty, all of Timberlake, and Ray Gentry and wife P.J., of Chapel Hill; two brothers, David Moore, of Fuquay Varina and John Henry Moore, of Durham; two sisters, Loyd Mitchell, of Raleigh and Eva Kate Cox, of Myrtle Beach, SC; nine grandchildren, Chris Cates, Suzanne Cates, Austin Gentry, Andy Gentry, Kyle Gentry, Brandon Gentry, Stephanie Gentry, Justin Gentry and Nathan Gentry; five great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held 2PM Tuesday at the Brooks & White Chapel by the Rev. Jack Snyder and the Rev. Vassar Jones. Burial will follow in Person Memorial Cemetery. Visitation will be held 7-8:30PM Monday at the Brooks & White Funeral Home.

Pallbearers will be grandchildren.

Memorials may be made to the Alzheimer�s Association, 400 Oberlin Rd., Suite 208, Raleigh, NC, 27605.

Merry Christmas from the family!

So, Friday night we had the family over for Christmas. It was Shanda's first full day with Bell's Palsy. (If you don't know what that is, that's when you get a damaged nerve in your spine and then half of your face doesn't work.) Everyone was supposed to be there by 6. Around 6:15 or 6:30, mama and daddy call up lost. I tell them how to get there, and here they come. Adam calls probably five or ten minutes later to ask where he is. I give him some directions and they make it there just shortly.

Mama and daddy brought Kentucky Fried Chicken and all the fixin's, Adam and Dorothy brought deviled eggs and brownies, and we had meatballs, french bread pizzas and snack mix ready. We grubbed down and it was good.

Then we all exchanged gifts...everybody opened a gift, then we showed and thanked...lather, rinse, repeat.

I won't go into detail about all the gifts, but I will tell about my jeans. I'm wearing new jeans today which is good because I'm about to lose a pocket on all my old jeans. Of course, this means four more days we can put off washing clothes now!

More soon.