Obituary Information

When possible, obituaries should be submitted to The Herald from the funeral home in charge of arrangements. Information received will be printed in our standard obituary format. As is the case with all information submitted to The Herald, we reserve the right to edit obituary information to fit our standard format.

We publish names of the deceased's children; we also include the number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren. We do not include in-laws, cousins, nieces and nephews or special friends.

Included in a brief history of the deceased is items such as their employment, professional, civic, community and religious affiliations. We omit personal tributes.

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Obituaries - 05/08/03

Eliseo Hernandez

Funeral services will be held at 3:30 p.m. today (Thursday) at Bryant Funeral Home in Franklin. The Rev. Nathan Moss will officiate. Burial will be in Woodlawn Cemetery. Buddy Frey, Jon Leonard, David Leonard, Rick Yannuzzelli, Joe Garcia and Robbie Frey will serve as pallbearers.

He was born in Hillsborough County, Fla., son of the late Eliseo and Jennie Maretta Hernandez. He was a veteran of the U.S. Army, serving in the Korean War and was a firefighter in Tampa, Fla.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Irene, who died April 28, and one grandson.

Surviving are one daughter, Jorene Hensel of Odessa, Fla.; one son, Eliseo G. Hernandez of Enterprise, Ala.; one sister, Zoraida Rodriquez of Tampa; one brother, Joe Garcia of Donaldsonville, Ga.; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

The family will receive friends 30 minutes prior to the services at the funeral home.

Frank Hodgin

Funeral services were held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, May 7, in Moses Creek Baptist Church. The Rev. Earl Holden officiated. Burial was in Upper Stephens Cemetery.

He was born on Aug. 26, 1906, in Macon County, the son of George Washington Hodgin and Carrie Hopkins Hodgin McConnell. He spent the last 80 years of his life in Jackson County, where he worked as a logger and farmer and was a deacon at Moses Creek Missionary Baptist Church.

He was preceded in death by his first wife, Susie Stephens, to whom he was married for more than 50 years; one son; one daughter; and one stepson.

Surviving are his second wife, Mariah Mills Stephens Hodgin; three daughters, Muriel Tallent and Altaina Jones of Detroit and Faye Jones of Jeffersonville, Ind.; six stepdaughters, Mae Stephens, Flora Haskett, Kay Potts, Virginia Parris, Frances Whitmire and Gaynell Bailey; three stepsons, Ralph Stephens, J.D. Stephens and Fred Stephens; 46 grandchildren; 82 great-grandchildren; and 32 great-great-grandchildren.

Melton-Riddle Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.

Jack Hall

Funeral services were held at 3 p.m. Saturday, May 3, at Franklin First Presbyterian Church. The Revs. Bob Abel and Clyde Cook officiated. Burial was in Iotla Methodist Church Cemetery. Pallbearers were Todd Ensley, Johnny Jones, Brian Jones, Bruce Watts, Steven Nicholson and Shawn Belcher.

A native of Athens, Ga., he was the son of the late Rufus and Viola York Hall. He retired from the U.S. Air Force, having served in Vietnam. He attended Franklin First Presbyterian Church.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Norma Jackson Hall, who died in 1995.

Surviving are one daughter, Jennifer Hall Boston of Sylva; one son, Daniel Harold Hall of Charlotte; and three grandchildren.

Bryant Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.

Ruth Parris

Funeral services were held at 4 p.m. Monday, May 5, at Webster Baptist Church. The Revs. Mike Dellenger and Ray McCall officiated. Burial was in Fairview Memorial Gardens.

A native and lifelong resident of Jackson County, she was a daughter of the late J.H. and Minnie Henson Potts. A graduate of Webster High School, she was active in the Webster Home Extension Club and was a past president. She was a member of Webster Baptist Church and was past president of the WMU of the church.

She was preceded in death by one daughter, Joyce Glenda Bumgarner; and three brothers, James, Bill and Harold Potts.

Surviving are her husband, Norman Parris; one daughter, Libby Norman of Sylva; three sisters, Frances Penland and Emma Lou Sumner of Sylva and Jean Ann Beaty of Florida; one stepson, Eddie Pittman of Sylva; one grandson; three stepgrandchildren and two step-great-grandchildren.

Moody Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.

Geraldine Burch

Funeral services were held at 11 a.m. Monday, May 5, at Mount Zion Baptist Church. The Revs. Tommy Ashe and David Burch officiated. Burial was in Burch Cemetery.

She was a native and lifelong resident of Jackson County, daughter of the late Fred and Linda Morgan Frizzell and wife of the late Verlin Burch, who died in 2000. She was a member of Mount Zion Baptist Church.

She was preceded in death by one sister, Ada Rogers; and one brother, Fred Morgan Frizzell.

Surviving are two daughters, Wanda Kay Conner of Kannapolis and Sandra K. Thomas of Canton; one son, Gary Neil Burch of Fayetteville; four brothers, Joe Frizzell of Waynesville, Dean Frizzell of Vale, Bill Frizzell of Sylva and Bobby Frizzell of Decatur, Ala.; one sister, Jessie Taylor of Canton, Ohio; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Moody Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.

Irene Hernandez

Graveside services were held at 2 p.m. Monday, May 5, at Woodlawn Cemetery in Franklin.

Bryant Funeral Home was in charge of local arrangements.

Luna Brown

Funeral services were held at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 3, at Moody Funeral Home. The Rev. Charles Carnes officiated. Burial was in Old Savannah Cemetery.

She was a native and lifelong resident of Jackson County and daughter of the late Robert and Ivory Buchanan Childers. She was a member of the Locust Field Baptist Church.

She was preceded in death by her husband, William Brown, who died in 1976.

Surviving are two sons, Barrett Potts of Jasonville, Ind., and William"Bill" Brown of Lawrence, Mich.; one brother, John B. Childers of Sylva; 10 grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren.

William Harris

William Thomas Harris, 54, of Midway Road, Pickens, S.C., died Thursday, May 1, 2003, at his residence.

Funeral services were held at 2 p.m. Monday, May 5, at Moody Funeral Home. The Revs. Carl Adams, Clifford Parker and Ted Capps officiated. Burial was in Old Field Cemetery.

A native of Jackson County, he had lived in Pickens for the past four years. He was a son of the late Gaston and Mae Bell Crawford Harris.

He was preceded in death by wife, Brenda Conner Harris; and one brother, Gaston McKinley Harris.

Surviving are his wife, Barbara Woodring Harris; two sons, David Thomas Harris and James Edward Harris of Sylva; one brother, Johnny Harris of Waynesville; two sisters, Joann Woodring of Sylva and Patsy Harris of Florida; and 19 grandchildren.

Judy Lites

Funeral services were held 2 p.m. Saturday, May 3, at Tara Garden Chapel. The Rev. Steve Maguire officiated. Burial was in White Grove Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery. She was preceded in death by her father, Louis Allen Woodard.

Surviving are her husband, Marvin Lites; her mother, Virda Johnson Woodard of Yatesville, Ga.; three sons, Michael Lites, Patrick Lites and Christopher Lites, all of Newnan; one sister, Pamela Comblast of Ft. Lewis, Fla.; four brothers, Larry Allen Woodard Sr. of Jacksonville, Ala., Glenn Johnson of Brooks, Ga., Dale Johnson of Dawsonville, Ga., and Alan Johnson of Port Orchard, Wash.

Edward Hall

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, May 15, at Melton-Riddle Funeral Home. The Revs. Lyndon Hall and Johnny Norris will officiate.

The Waynesville VFW Post 5203 will conduct military honors. Burial was in the Philippines.

Robert Turner

Funeral and burial service were at Western Carolina State Veterans Cemetery in Black Mountain at 2 p.m. Monday, April 28. The Rev. Roy Burnett officiated, with military honor guard by the William E. Dillard Post 104 of the American Legion.

He was a native of Suffolk, Va., and a former resident of the Eastern Shore, Outer Banks area of North Carolina. He had been a resident of Sylva for the past four years.

Son of the late James and Virginia Neville Turner, he retired from the U.S. Navy (Seabees) after 25 years and service during the Vietnam War.

Surviving are his wife, Bonnie Brown Turner; one daughter, Bonnie Turner Randall of Waterford, Conn.; one son, Robert Lee Turner Jr. of Pensacola, Fla.; four sisters, Nina Lewis of Sylva, Virginia Byrd of Vero Beach, Fla., Ruth King of Pensacola, Fla., and Marie Turner of Hertford; two brothers, James Edward Turner III of Foley, Ala., and Russell Barnnett of Vero Beach, Fla.; and three grandchildren.

Memorials may be made to Seabee Memorial Scholarship Association Inc., P.O. Box 6574, Silver Springs, Md. 20916.

Moody Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements. An online memorial and register is available at www.pemoody. com.

Opal Thomas

A memorial service was held at 1 p.m. Wednesday, April 30, at the Community Center of Il Sorrento Mobile Home Park in Moreno Valley.

A native of Sylva, she was born Dec. 25, 1915, daughter of the late Charlie and Lora Crawford.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Joe B. Thomas Sr., who died in 1990; one sister, Eloyse Curry; and two brothers, Lee and Charles Crawford.

Surviving are three sons, Bobby Dechand and Ron Thomas of Arizona and Joe Thomas Jr. of California; one daughter, Judy Patterson of Florida; 12 grandchildren; 15 great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild.

Maggie Brendle

Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. today (Thursday) at Melton-Riddle Funeral Home. The Rev. Bo Brown will officiate. Burial will be in Barkers Creek Cemetery.

A native of Jackson County, she was a member of Long Branch Baptist Church. She was a daughter of Louise Wykle McMahan of Whittier and the late Dan McMahan.

She was preceded in death by a twin, Reggie Dan McMahan.

Surviving are her husband of 10 years, Arthur Warren Brendle; two sisters, Vernel Carter and Rosie Bowers, both of Sylva; seven brothers, Douglas, Huey, Dickie and Danny McMahan, all of Sylva, Olin McMahan of Lake Toxaway, Jerry McMahan of Cullowhee and Billy McMahan of Montana.

The family was to have received friends Wednesday, May 7, at the funeral home.

Back to Archive: 05/08/03.