Obituaries of the Swannanoa Valley July 20
Ina Brown
Swannanoa
Ina Brown, 80, of Swannanoa, passed away July 8, 2017.
Mrs. Brown was born March 2, 1937 in Buncombe County. She was an active member of Swannanoa Free Will Baptist Church where she played the piano and sang in the choir. Ina was loved and will be missed by all who knew her.
Ina is preceded in death by her parents; and husband, Carroll Brown.
Ina is survived by her children, Terri Garren and Keith (Tiphanie); brother, Bill Smith (Johnnie); grandchildren, Stephanie, Stacey, Zackary, and Colby; great grandchildren, Addison, Shelby, Austin, and Damon; cousin, Clara Jean Wright (Bruce); and numerous nieces and nephews.
The family received friends Tuesday, July 11, 2017 from 6-8 p.m. at Swannanoa Free Will Baptist Church. A Celebration of Life Service was Wednesday, July 12, 2017 at 2 p.m. at Swannanoa Free Will Baptist Church with Rev. Jack Ward officiating. Burial will be in Sky View Memorial Park.
The family would like to extend a special thank you to the staff of the John F. Keever Solace Center for the loving and wonderful care of Ina. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the John F. Keever Solace Center, PO Box 25338, Asheville, NC 28813.
Arrangements are in the care of Harwood Home for Funerals.
Phyllis Ann Ward
Black Mountain
Phyllis Ann Ward, 62, of Black Mountain, passed away July 9, 2017.
Phyllis was a loving and caring mother to all. She loved her grandchildren, great-grandchildren, friends and pets. She enjoyed going to yard sales and flea markets. Phyllis was a wonderful cook and would never let anyone go hungry.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Cecil and Hazel Peterson; brother, Bobby “Pete” Peterson; and sister, Inez Bartlett.
Phyllis is survived by her loving husband, Tommy Ward; children, Lanny Luther, Joshua Luther, and Amanda Owenby; grandchildren, Tara Walkingstick, Alex Luther, Anthony Luther, Austin Owenby, Erran Owenby, Gabe Luther, Kaleb Chandler, Chance Luther; and great-grandchildren, Anna Luther, Alex Luther Jr., Allie Luther, Nevaeh Luther, Axel Luther, Evan Lee Walkingstick Dykeman, and Jaedyn Walkingstick Dykeman.
The family will receive friends Friday, July 14, 2017 from 2-3 p.m. at Harwood Home for Funerals with a graveside service immediately following at Mountain View Memorial Park with Chaplain Michael Ball officiating. Arrangements by Harwood Home for Funerals, harwoodhomeforfunerals.com.
Gary Shell
Black Mountain
Gary Shell of Black Mountain passed away at his home on July 10, 2017.
Gary grew up in Black Mountain and attended NC State University. He worked in several states as a geologist in oil exploration for Texaco, Crown Oil, and some smaller companies. He then had a career in public service as a satellite imaging specialist in Washington, DC and at White Sands, NM. He retired in September of 2011 and returned home to Black Mountain from New Mexico to the mountains he loved. Gary was a history buff and lover of books.
He is survived by his brother, Ronnie Shell (Sally); nephew, John Shell (Andrea), Andrew and Hannah; and niece, Sarah Libby (Matt), Maggie, and Sophie. Gary was buried next to his mother and father at Mountain View Memorial Park. Arrangements by Harwood Home for Funerals.
Ida Meador Wilson Smith
Asheville
Ida Meador Wilson Smith passed away peacefully on Wednesday, June 21, 2017 at the Baptist Retirement Home where she was a resident for almost 21 years. Ida was born October 15, 1920 in Meade County, KY, the seventh of eight children born to Thomas Moss Wilson and Flora Meador Wilson. She graduated from Eastern Kentucky State Teachers College and pursued a teaching career in education. On August 2, 1942, she married Rev. Charles Wilson Smith. During their 37 years of marriage, they had nine children. Rev. Smith passed away in 1979 after serving churches in Kentucky, Florida, and North Carolina (First Baptist Church, Swannanoa and Elk Mountain Baptist Church in Woodfin).
Ida was predeceased by her oldest daughter, Julia Sears Sides of Asheville in 1990 who was married to Dr. James Sides. Surviving are eight children: Dr. Rebecca Sue Mann of Asheville and ex-husband, Rev. Dr. Ronald Mann of Jefferson, NC; Marjorie Meador Shuman and husband, Rev. Donald Shuman of Kannapolis; Dr. Charles Wilson Smith and wife, Connie of Little Rock, AR; Clara Jean Hollar and late husband, John of Todd, NC; Roger Lee Smith and wife, Jennifer of Cypress, CA; Erwin Truett Smith and wife, Sandy of Salisbury; Gregory Paul Smith of Black Mountain; and Benjamin Kenneth Smith and wife, Linda of Newark, DE.
Her lineage includes 24 grandchildren and 32 great-grandchildren. From her marriage to Rev. Smith comes 65 descendants with 3 more great-grandchildren on the way.
Ida’s passion was evangelism expressed in her love for Jesus Christ and in her desire to invite others to church. As she wrote later in life, “It was not hard being a preacher’s wife because I like being with people and ‘doing the Lord’s work;’ being a Christian means I love Christ first in everything I do.”
Funeral services were be held on Monday, June 26, 2017 at 2 p.m. at Starnes Cove Baptist Church in Asheville, NC where she was a member for more than 35 years. Visitation was at 12:30 p.m. Services were conducted by Rev. Charlie Sams, pastor of Starnes Cove Baptist Church, and Rev. Billy Honeycutt, chaplain at the Baptist Retirement Home.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Starnes Cove Baptist Church, 149 Starnes Cove Road, Asheville, NC 28806; Baptist Retirement Home, 213 Richmond Hill Drive, Asheville, NC 28806; or The McCune Center, 101 Lions Way, Black Mountain, NC 28711.
Condolences may be sent to the family at harwoodhomeforfunerals.com.
Frances Davis
Black Mountain
Frances Davis passed away on July 6, 2017 in Asheville, NC at the age of 64.
Frances is survived by her mother, Sarah Davis, of Tulsa, OK; daughters Sarah Burgher (Phillip) of Atlanta, GA and Emily Cadmus (Will) of Asheville, NC; siblings Donald (Christine), John (Diana), and Jennifer (Cliff) of Tulsa, OK, and Scott of Richmond, ME; four beautiful grandchildren; and former husband Dan Cadmus of Portland, OR. She is preceded in death by her father, Jack Davis.
Frances was born in a party dress on January 1, 1953 in Beatrice, NE and spent her childhood in Denver, CO. She graduated from the University of Northern Colorado with a bachelor’s degree in special education and later received her master’s degree in developmental psychology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
In 1979, Frances and former husband, Dan, moved to North Carolina where she found great joy and wonder working with children and began her graduate studies in developmental psychology. In 1981 she began a long and celebrated career as an educator, therapist, and researcher. For the last 15 years, Frances served as a fierce advocate for families and children with the Family Infant Preschool Program (FIPP) in Morganton, NC. She frequently presented to a national audience and created implementation tools used by therapists and teachers all over the world to support families with young children.
Frances welcomed daughters Sarah and Emily in 1980 and 1982 respectively. She instilled in her daughters the tremendous gifts of independence and creativity. She encouraged them, and many others, to be open and generous with their hearts and to pursue lives filled with love.
In her free time, Frances enjoyed performing in, directing, and supporting local community theatre. She especially loved musicals and was convinced the world could break into song at any moment, so much so, that she regularly sang out loud wherever she went.
A memorial service is scheduled for July 22 at 2 p.m. at Haywood Arts Regional Theatre. All are welcome to attend and celebrate Frances’s life. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to Haywood Arts Regional Theatre (HART) at 250 Pigeon Street, Waynesville, NC 28786 or Family Infant Preschool Program (FIPP) c/o Assure the Future, 300 Enola Road, Morganton, NC 28655. The family would like to thank the staff at CarePartners Solace Center for their service and compassion.