1920s

Two members of the Class of 1927 have died. Lillian Walston Creal ’27 of Newport News, Va., (left) died April 9 at age 99. She taught elementary school in Scotland Neck and Roanoke Rapids before moving to Newport News in 1938 and teaching there until her 1973 retirement from St. Andrew’s Episcopal School. She was a longtime hostess at a restaurant in Newmarket Circle, taught Sunday school and was a member of the Swingin’ Singers at First Baptist Church, and was a past matron of the Emira Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star. Mavourneen James Havens ’27 of Tarboro (right) died March 16 at age 100. She and her husband, Richard Bonner, owned and operated Havens Feed and Seed Store in Tarboro for more than 50 years.


1930s

Hattie Holland Bass ’38 of Fayetteville died March 17 at age 90. She was valedictorian of Gray’s Creek High School, taught math at Fayetteville High School, and retired from civil service in Germany and at the Pentagon. She was buried with her husband at Arlington National Cemetery. Mildred Estelle Corbett Brown ’37 of Hillsborough died March 8. She taught in Moncure before marrying and working in the family business, J. L. Brown & Sons. She was a Cub Scout den mother, Girl Scout leader, and member of the PTA, church circle, and Hillsborough Historical Society. She taught school again starting in the 1950s and traveled the U.S. and Canada with her husband. Frances Spainhour Hardee ’36 of Concord died May 14 at age 95. One of 14 siblings, she taught elementary school for 30 years, was married to a Methodist minister for 37 years, and traveled to all 50 states and her ancestral home in Munitz, Switzerland. Mabel Dickens Council Johnson ’34 of Lillington and Fuquay-Varina died March 22 at age 95. She spent 26 of her 32 years of teaching in Fuquay-Varina, coached girls basketball, and was the first female school-sponsored drivers education teacher in North Carolina. She was active in church choir and enjoyed golfing, bowling, gardening, and attending her students’ class reunions into her 90s. Kathleen Robertson Lamkin ’37 of Fredericksburg, Va., died July 2, 2000. She worked for the Department of the Navy at Arlington Hall during WWII, later taught elementary school in Montgomery County, Md., and was a Girl Scout leader, active church member, and senior citizens center volunteer. Maggie Inman Ward Morrison ’32 of Lumberton, formerly of Rowland, died April 2 at age 96. She was treasurer for Rowland United Methodist Church, and worked for the Bank of Rowland and later Southern National Bank. Sallie Evelyn Williams Robinson ’33 of Charlotte died March 7. She taught school before marrying in 1937, documented her family history for her descendants, and was active in her church, the Battle of Charlotte Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Virginia Dare Chapter of the Daughters of American Colonists, Myers Park Country Club, and Friends of the Mint Museum. Christine Williams Tripp ’38 of Greenville died March 14 at age 91. Originally from Nash County, she taught high school science in Greenville and Rocky Mount for 35 years. Vera Dare Rouse Webster ’39 of Eden died May 16. She taught home economics for 15 years in Wilmington and Eden, N.C., Martinsville, Va., and Indiana, and edited science textbooks for 22 years in New York City. Alumni relatives include her daughter Jenifer Wynn Webster Day Avina ’77, and grandchildren April Michelle Avina ’01 and Joshua Michael Avina ’03.


1940s

Jane Currin Adcock ’43 of Oxford died March 12. She taught at Helena Elementary School in Roxboro and at Tolar-Oak Hill Elementary School in Granville County. Margaret Brown Benson ’40 of Marshallberg died March 19 at age 92. She got her masters degree at George Washington University in 1949 and taught public school in Prince George’s County, Md., for 43 years until her 1984 retirement. She received her ministerial diploma from Southeastern College in 1987. Sybil Davis Brantley ’41 of Charlotte died March 21. She played in the Charlotte Symphony, held office in her church, was active in her book club, and volunteered with Friendship Trays. Lois Green Brown ’43 of Greenville died March 19. She taught home economics in Washington before getting married. Active in her church for 55 years, she held offices and received honorary life membership from the Women of the Church in 1987. She was a member of the Thalian Book Club and traveled internationally. Memorials may be made to the W.W. and Lois Brown Family Scholarship, c/o ECU Foundation. Ophelia Parker Carraway ’49 of Abingdon, Va., died May 22. A Pitt County native, she taught at James Hurst Elementary School in Cradock, Va., and second grade at G.A. Treakle Elementary School until her 1989 retirement after 23 years of teaching. Married for 58 years, she had three children and was active in her church. Virginia Sullivan Dunlap ’40 of New Bern died April 8. She taught in Anson County from 1940 to 1945, in New Bern at Eleanor Marshall School for 23 years and at Trent Park School for two years until her 1980 retirement. She was active in Alpha Delta Kappa and participated in service projects during her retirement. Joyce Turner Gardner ’47 of Fountain died April 29. She sang on the radio and played piano in the community, worked at a New York law firm in the 1920s and for Southern Bell in Durham; and enjoyed restoring antiques, telling stories, and cooking. Frances Elizabeth Nance Nash ’40 of Columbia, S.C., died March 15. Originally from Chatham County, she started at ECTC at age 16, and taught in Manteo before joining the Navy during WWII as an ensign and being posted to Washington, D.C. She had six children and retired as an accounting clerk in Winston-Salem, where she taught Sunday school and held offices in her church for 30 years. Barbara Selby Stevens ’48 of Dudley died April 4. She taught seventh and eighth grades in eastern N.C. and retired from Brogden Middle School in 1982. At St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, she was in the adult choir, altar guild, Episcopal Church Women, and volunteered with the soup kitchen. ADA ROSE YOW STOKES ’41 of Lake Junaluska died Feb. 23. When Atlanta schools began desegregation in 1961, she was the only white teacher to show up for work. She and her husband enjoyed traveling, especially in Korea, and founded the Bishop Mack and Rose Stokes Chair in Theology at Emory in 2008. Peggy Adams Tatarski ’48 of Atlantic Beach and formerly of Reidsville, died April 30. She was a teacher, co-owned Adams Electric Company, and was active in Bogue Banks Baptist Church. Page Duke Thompson ’47 of Roanoke, Va., died April 4 in Durham. She taught in Mount Olive before getting married and moving to Roanoke, where she taught fifth grade for 30 years at Wasena Elementary School. She was assistant principal for a while and was awarded lifetime membership in the PTA. She was also active in her church. Garnette Leake Crocker Tuten ’46 of Raleigh died May 10. She was a home economics agent in Williamston for the N.C. Cooperative Extension Service; served a term as vice president of the Junior Woman’s Club in the 1960s; and enjoyed Peru, the Outer Banks, ACC basketball, needlework, and dancing. Sallie Joe GURGANUS Williamson ’49 of Charlotte died March 29. A Bethel native, she lived in Raleigh for 50 years after getting married and battled diabetes for 73 years.


1950s

W. Edward Anderson ’57 of Raleigh died April 23. He was in the Navy during the Korean War; retired as vice president of Sir Walter Chevrolet, Pylon Commercial Park, and Anderson Realty; was on the boards for Edenton Street United Methodist Church and Wake Rehab Center; and was a member of the Carolina and Cape Fear country clubs in Wilmington and the Surf Club at Wrightsville Beach. Jane Bullock Barnhill ’59 ’65 of Bethel died April 16. She retired after 32 years teaching public school and was active on the Pitt County Planning Board and at Bethel Baptist Church. Sallie Gail Hines Britt ’52 of Greenville died April 1. At St. James United Methodist Church, she was in the Methodist Women’s Circle and past director of Operation Sunshine. She enjoyed cooking, sewing, and gardening, and was a member of Home Pride Garden Club and Brook Valley Country Club. She was married to Austin Hoover Britt ’53 for 56 years. Clara Jenkins Crabtree ’51 of Durham died April 7. She was a teacher, school librarian, and the first library supervisor for Durham County Schools. She held office in numerous state and national professional library organizations. After her retirement, she received life membership from the N.C. Library Association. She worked in Braggtown Baptist Church’s library and was the 21-year volunteer librarian for the Yates Baptist Association Library. She also directed the Associational Media Library Organization. Roberta Hall Gainey ’53 of Stedman died March 7 in Clinton. She taught at Stedman High School, now Stedman Primary School, for 39 years, and taught Sunday school at Magnolia Baptist Church in Stedman. Frances Estelle Greene Hendrix ’55 of Franklin, Tenn., died May 18. A descendant of Revolutionary War General Nathaniel Greene, she was a counseling psychologist who worked with Hospice volunteers and Alzheimer’s patients and their caregivers through the Nashville Mental Health Association Homes program. She raised and showed horses and led 4-H trail rides through the Bulldog Bridle Club in Athens, Ga. She was a member of the Heritage Foundation and the AAUW Recent Graduates Group and volunteered with the Lauback Literacy Method—Each One Teach One. Lawson Alan Jackson Sr. ’58 of Savannah, Ga., formerly of Charlotte, died April 19. He was an Army paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne during the Korean War and retired as a salesman in the southeastern U.S. His son, Alan Jackson Jr. ’01, is a doctor in Atlanta. Lt. Col. Arthur Henry King ’53 of Forest City and Kinston died April 17. He retired from the Air Force and was former owner and president of Lakeside Mills. In addition to his Vietnam Service Medal, he received the Distinguished Flying Cross; the Bronze Star, National Defense Service, and Combat Readiness medals; the Small Arms Expert Service and Air Force Longevity Service awards; and Air Force Commendation. Lt. Col. Dr. John Robert Kluttz ’53 of Fayetteville died March 21. Born prematurely in 1929, he was the Goldsboro hospital’s first incubator baby. He was senior class president at ECU, married Jeanine Ennis ’53, served in the Air Force for 20 years, and was a therapist with the Veterans Administration Center’s Readjustment Counseling Service in Fayetteville. BENJAMIN JOEL MARTINDALE ’50 of Rocky Mount died June 24. A veteran of WWII, he retired in 1985 as claims manager at CSX Transportation. He was a Mason, Elk, Shriner, and a member of the Royal Order of Jesters. Eugene Franklin Olive ’58 of Raleigh died March 24. During the Korean War, he was in the 100-member drum and bugle corps called “Young’s Yankees” while stationed at Lockbourne Air Force Base in Columbus, Ohio. He was a state government auditor for 33 years and a member of Freemason of Raleigh Lodge #500. Edward Oliver ’56 ’63 of Alexandria, Va., died March 21. He was a Marine and taught high school English and social studies in Greenville and Virginia before becoming an assistant principal and director of employee relations for Arlington County Schools. He also taught at the University of Virginia and Defense Department schools in Okinawa, Japan, and Verdun, France. He enjoyed skiing in Utah and Argentina, owned 1,000+ books, and traveled to six continents, including Antarctica. A. Glenn Rowell ’59 ’78 ’86 of Fayetteville died May 20. He worked for Atlantic Coastline Railroad before serving in the Army during the Korean War. With the Cumberland County Board of Education for 23 years, he retired in 1987 as an assistant principal at Westover Junior High School. He operated Woodland Nursery for 31 years, held office in his church, and was a member of the Cumberland County Historical Society.


1960s

BETTY JEAN BAKER ’67, formerly of Knightdale, died June 24.  She retired as chief statistician with the government records section of the Office of Archives and History in Raleigh. She published articles on history and genealogy and books on seven N.C. familes, including Gov. Jim Hunt’s. Rev. Lawrence Kempster Brown ’64 of Raleigh died May 5. He was a two-sport scholarship athlete at ECU. In December 1968, he was ordained and accepted St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church in Havelock as his first parish. He was rector at other churches in Raleigh for more than 20 years, owned Eastwind Bar and Grill in Carolina Beach and a state automobile inspection station in Raleigh. He opened Knightdale Academy of Gymnastics with his daughter in 1995, and, after his parochial retirement, owned Da Vinci’s Pasta in Raleigh with his wife. His Australian Terriers won three consecutive breed competitions at the Westminster Kennel Club in New York City, and he was featured in the 100th Anniversary Westminster Kennel Club book. Rev. W. Murray BULLOCK ’60 of Tarboro died May 4. He worked with the N.C. Probation Commission and was an assistant administrator at Edgecombe General Hospital before becoming a minister. Among other churches, he pastored Church of the Ascension in Hickory. After retirement, he was an interim priest in other states. MARVIN LEE CAVINESS ’69 of Knoxville, Tenn., died April 8. He was a biology teacher, respiratory therapist, and clinical perfusionist. Bonny Cameron Gilchrist ’60 of Sanford died May 2. She taught high school English for 34 years before retiring at Western Harnett High School. Thomas Gillam III ’68 of Windsor died March 31. In the Army during WWII, he fought in the Battle of the Bulge. He was active in St. Thomas Episcopal Church, a docent at Hope Plantation, taught history at Bertie High School, and enjoyed antiques and the beach. Garland Francis Johnson ’61 ’63 died Feb. 24 in Hillsborough. In the Navy, he served with the First Marine Division at Guadalcanal and in the Pacific Theater under General MacArthur during WWII. Before retiring as a chief pharmacist’s mate, he worked on Adm. Richard Byrd’s last trip to Antarctica. He taught school, worked for the N.C. Health Department, and was married to Ida Yolanda Johnson ’44 for 60 years. Lillie Ann Midgette “LIL” Jones ’61 of Peachtree City, Ga., died May 26. She was active in Peachtree City United Methodist Church. Harold Jason Mills ’66 died March 22. He was in the Navy for four years before working at Fieldcrest Mills and spending 24 years as an accountant with Burroughs-Wellcome until his 1993 retirement. Nancy Gayle Compton Odham ’64 of Matthews died April 21. After graduating in the first class from ECU’s School of Nursing, she was a public health and genetic nurse who was active in several civic and charity groups. Memorials may be made to the ECU School of Nursing. Charles Ernest “Chuck” Pace ’69 of Suffolk, Va., died March 11. In the Army, he was stationed in Vietnam and later worked as a counselor for the Portsmouth Department of Juvenile Justice. He was married to Linda Watson Pace ’69. Thomas Jefferson Powell ’61 of Spencer died May 12. He was a middle school industrial arts teacher in Rowan County, a church construction volunteer at Spencer Presbyterian Church, and a foreign mission worker in Africa. Sue Wallace Tyer ’67 of Oak Island died April 17. She taught in Beaufort County and Fayetteville and Kinston city school systems.


1970s

Wesley Neal Daughtry ’78 of Greenville died May 12. He worked at ECU’s Joyner Library. Carolyn Frazier Moxley ’78 of Kinston died April 13. She taught in Knightdale for a year and in Lenoir County for 24 years until her 1995 retirement. She was active in Alpha Gamma Delta; Sunday school director at her church; a Brownie, Girl, and Cub scout troop leader; past president of Kinston Lions Club Auxiliary; and a “Pink Lady” volunteer for the Lenoir Memorial Hospital Auxiliary. She enjoyed international travel, animals, and collecting antiques and dolls. Capt. John Parker Sheehan ’71 of O’Fallon, Ill., died May 1. He was in the Air Force at Scott AFB, and then worked in civil service there as a computer programmer/analyst from 1972 to 2002. He played volleyball at the AFB, and with the St. Louis Turner Organization and other U.S. Volleyball Association teams, and was a setter on the 1983 All American Men’s Senior First Team. He coached volleyball at McKendree University. William Arnold “Bill” Williamson ’73 of Blounts Creek, formerly of Greenville, died April 5. He served in the Army before returning to school and working for NACCO for 34 years. A baseball lover, he coached his sons in the Winterville Recreation League for the Pitt Bulldogs and the Greenville Little League for Jarman’s Auto, and enjoyed watching his great-nephew play for the Greenville Lions. Marian Langley Wilson ’78 of Grimesland died March 13. She taught first grade at Greenville Christian Academy for 24 years and Sunday school at her church.


1980s

Ernest Lewis Davis Jr. ’86 of Rockingham, formerly of Richmond, Va., died March 11. He played cello in churches and symphony orchestras. Mary Hobbs Armstrong Valentine McIntyre ’82 of Nashville died March 2. She was a nurse in Norfolk, Va., Raleigh, and High Point before becoming director of nursing at Wilson’s Guardian Care. She worked in quality assurance at Nash General Hospital from 1984 to 1998 when she retired as department head. In 1992, she was named one of N.C.’s Great 100 Nurses. She was a Nashville town council member from 1997 to 2001. She enjoyed playing bridge and slot machines, betting on horses, and teaching children to play poker and bet with M&Ms. Angela Briggs “Angie” Pettus ’80 of Clayton died April 26. She was a business operations manager at SAS. Edgar Allen Toney Sr. ’85 of Orlando, Fla., died March 18. He was in the Marines from 1955 to 1982 when he retired as a major, and he was involved in the Drill Instructors Association reunions. A past commodore of the Rugged Point Yacht Club at Camp Lejeune, he and his wife of more than 50 years owned the sailboat Tuition.


1990s

Bradley Shane Beatty ’95 of Greenville died May 12. He owned Big Al’s Tavern and rental property, and was an electrician. He was active in dog rescue, his church, and the Brotherhood Motorcycle Club, which hosted weekly fundraising steak dinners at Big Al’s to support the Vietnam Veterans Association. James Reid Hooper ’93, an honorary member of the ECU Alumni Association, died April 5. He served for two years in the WWII European Theater, worked with Wachovia bank for 35 years and was Greenville city executive, and taught at the American Institute of Banking. He was on the boards for PCMH, the East Carolina Vocational Center, and East Carolina Farm Credit Association; a past president of the Host Lions Club of Greenville and Greenville Golf and Country Club; and a member of the Pitt Golden “K” Kiwanis Club. He was the 1982 Greenville Chamber of Commerce citizen of the year and received the Jack Edwards Service Award from the Greenville Noon Rotary Club in 1997.

Michael Dixon and David Hawkins watch Jim Rees produce a radio show.

Faculty Deaths

James Lester “Jim” Rees of Greenville died April 17. A graduate of Millersville State College with a master’s degree from Syracuse, he worked at radio stations and taught high school in Pennsylvania before joining the faculty here in 1966. He retired as professor emeritus in 2003 but continued to teach part time until 2007. He taught voice and diction, public speaking, broadcast announcing, audio production, and business-professional speech. He produced two recordings of School of Music ensembles, hosted media programs for ECU and radio shows broadcast in North Carolina and Virginia. He narrated theater and music productions, played the Lord of the Manor at ECU’s Christmas Madrigal Dinner series with wife Franceine Perry Rees ’65, the former class notes editor of this magazine. He was a consultant for the General Electric Co., N.C. Regional Drug Program, N.C. Humanities Committee, N.C. State Board of Education, America’s 400th Anniversary Committee, and N.C./ECU Center for Applied Technology; and he gave numerous lectures and workshops for professional, civic, and honor societies. Memorials may be made to ECU’s Lester and Alta Rees Memorial Scholarship.


Dr. Mary Morecroft Fowler of Greenville died March 22. She taught counselor education from 1972 to 1988. She taught children on an Indian reservation on Long Island before getting married and moving to Ohio. She traveled internationally, volunteered with groups for disadvantaged people, was active in the Unitarian church, and was known for her motto, “Make it a good day.”  Memorials may be made to the Alzheimer’s Research Fund, ECU Medical & Health Sciences Foundation.
 
Gordon Brazil Gilbert Sr. of Stillwater, Okla., died Feb. 27 at age 100. He taught health and physical education at ECTC from 1938 to 1940 before serving in the Army during WWII. He was also a high school coach and history teacher and was director for men’s intramural sports at Oklahoma State University for 33 years.

Rhoda Marie Nielsen, of College Park, Md., died April 19. A native of Vindblaes, Denmark, she was a nurse in Denmark and Iowa before becoming a nurse for the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society in the Belgian Congo from 1956 to 1960. She taught at ECU from 1965 to 1969 and at Emory University before retiring as the International Nursing Program’s acting curriculum coordinator.

JOSEPHINE BISHOP “Jo” Saunders ’65 of Greenville died April 5. A Laurinburg native, she taught dance for almost 20 years before attending ECU, where she later taught in the health, physical education, recreation, and safety program from 1964 to her 1985 retirement. She was named N.C. dance teacher of the year by the N.C. Association of Health, Physical Education and Dance in 1992. In 2002 she received the teacher of the year award from the S.C. Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. For 57 years, she was married to Frank Wendell Saunders, who taught math at ECU from 1961 to 1994.

Mary Goodman Sorensen died March 18. A Hendersonville native, she taught English at ECU from 1957 to 1976. During her 50 years in Greenville, she was active in her church, the ECU Retired Faculty Association, Alpha Phi Gamma, the Delta Alpha Chapter of Alphi Phi, and the Sierra Book Club, and was married to Dr. Frederick Sorensen, who taught English at ECU from 1961 to 1973.