Obituary Information

The Sylva Herald prints obituaries free of charge as a service to its readers.

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Obituaries - 07/03/03

Betty Brady

Betty Jackson Brady, 68, of Cherokee, died Saturday, June 28, 2003, at her residence, 68 Betty Brady Road, after a period of declining health.

Funeral services were held 2 p.m. Tuesday, July 1, at Rock Hill Baptist Church. The Revs. James "Bo" Parris and Dan Lambert officiated. Burial followed in Cherokee's Birdtown Cemetery.

She was a native and lifelong resident of Cherokee and the daughter of the late Jacob Jackson and the late Ollie (Ben) Jackson. She was a member of Rock Hill Baptist Church.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Arthur Brady, who died in 1996; and two granddaughters.

Surviving are three daughters, Rose Crisp and Nancy Brady, both of Cherokee, and Suzie Lequire of Bryson City; two sons, Jim Brady and Thad Brady, both of Cherokee; three sisters, Bessie Widcatt, Elizabeth Jackson and Sara Ben, all of Cherokee; one stepsister, Nancy Biddix of Cherokee; 12 grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.

Moody Funeral Home assisted the family with arrangements. An online memorial and register is available at www.pemoody.com.

Judy Crawford

Judy Bryson Crawford, 56, of 174 Ranzy Crawford Road, Sylva, died Saturday, June 28, 2003, after a lengthy illness.

A memorial service will be held at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, July 13, at Melton-Riddle Funeral Home.

The family will receive friends immediately after the service. She was born Nov. 29, 1946, and was reared in Buncombe and Jackson counties. She attended Enka High School and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

She worked in Greensboro until 1977 when she returned to the homeplace in Willets community. She was the daughter of the late Earl and Elizabeth Crawford and the granddaughter of the late Ranzy and Julia Crawford.

Prior to her illness she was employed as a greenhouse manager by Ray's Florist and Greenhouse.

Surviving is one brother, Jan J. Crawford of Sylva.

Memorials may be made to Hospice of WestCare, 132 Sylva Plaza, Sylva, N.C. 28779; or Public Radio Station WCQS, 73 Broadway St., Asheville, N.C. 28801.

Edith Hooper Lola Edith Hamilton Hooper, 78, of Dillsboro, died Thursday, June 26, 2003, at her residence. No formal service is planned. Daughter of the late Patrick Hagan and Bertie Marie Shortt Hamilton, she was a native of Cullowhee's East LaPorte community. She graduated from Cullowhee High School and Cecil's Business College and was a published poet. She lived on various air bases across the world with her husband, who was a U.S. Air Force pilot, and they returned home to Caney Fork community in 1974 when he retired. She was preceded in death by her husband, Lyle Hooper, who died in 1999; two sisters, Lorine Franklin and Juanita "Tom" Cole; and one brother, Ernest Hamilton. Surviving are two daughters, Marsha Holder and Rose Hooper, both of Sylva; two sisters, Katherine Robinson and Ethel Smith, both of Waynesville; and three grandchildren. Memorials may be made to WestCare Hospice, 132 Sylva Plaza, Sylva, N.C. 28779.
Flonnie Redmond Flonnie Mae Patterson Redmond, 91, of Wytheville, Va., formerly of Whittier, died Wednesday, June 25, 2003. Graveside services were held at 1 p.m. Saturday, June 28, in Whittier Cemetery. She was preceded in death by her husband, George Frank Redmond; two daughters; and one granddaughter. Surviving are one brother, Samuel R. "Bub" Patterson Jr. of Candler; and one grandson. Barrett Funeral Home was in charge of the arrangements.
Mildred Carpenter Mildred Dalton Carpenter, 72, of Franklin, died Thursday, June 26, 2003. Funeral services were held at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 28, in the chapel of Macon Funeral Home. Burial was in Woodlawn Cemetery. Pallbearers were Kevin Burrell, Tommy Carpenter, Rink Hallford, Jeff Carpenter, John Wilson and Brian Cabe. A native of Macon County, she was the daughter of the late Lon Jennings Dalton and Janet Calloway Dalton. She was a member of Scotts Creek Baptist Church in Sylva. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by one son, Ronald Dalton Carpenter, who died in 1975. Surviving are her husband of 54 years, Harley Carpenter Jr.; one daughter, Evelyn Carpenter Greer of Franklin; two grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society, 120 Executive Park, Building 1, Asheville, N.C. 28801.
Mary Wylie Mary Willie Sutton Wylie, 77, of Lilac Drive, Dillsboro, died Tuesday, June 24, 2003, at her sister's home in Sylva after a period of declining health. Funeral services were held at 2 p.m. Friday, June 27, at Locust Field Baptist Church. The Rev. Charles Carnes officiated. Burial was in the church cemetery. Pallbearers were George Sutton, Steve Sutton, John Ray, Bill Snyder, Billy Browning and Jack Moore. A native of Jackson County, she had lived in Lowell for the past 50 years. She had moved back to Jackson County during the past year. She was a member of Lowell Church of God and daughter of the late Julius and Rose Hensley Sutton. She was also preceded in death by her husband, Junie Craig Wylie; three brothers, J.L. Sutton, Clint Sutton and Bobby Sutton; two sisters, Lula Edna Sutton and Lucy Buchanan; and several half-brothers and half-sisters. Surviving are two sisters, Ann Sutton Snyder and Betty Lou Sutton Sutton, both of Sylva; two half-sisters, Mabel Greene of Balsam and Mildred Cooper of Asheville; and two brothers, Winfred Sutton of Sylva and Medford Sutton of Dayton, Ohio. Memorials may be made to Locust Field Baptist Church, c/o Virginia Pangel, P.O. Box 99, Dillsboro, N.C. 28725. Melton-Riddle Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.
Dorothy Wike Dorothy T. Wike, 74, of Grandview Circle, Waynesville, died Thursday, June 26, 2003, at her residence after a period of declining health. Funeral services were held at 11 a.m. Monday, June 30, at Melton-Riddle Funeral Home. Pastor Clayton Davis officiated. Burial was in Speedwell community's Hooper Cemetery. Pallbearers were Jimmy Tilley, Derick Tilley, Ben Tilley, Mikes Niles, Brian Bauman and Charles Moore. A native of Jackson County, she had lived in Haywood County since 1950. She was valedictorian of her high school class of 1945. She graduated magna cum laude from then Western Carolina Teachers College in 1949. Her first year of teaching was as art supervisor for Forsyth County Schools. She taught English her second year at Waynesville Junior High School. After raising her family she continued to teach eighth- and ninth-grade English at the same school. She wrote poetry and had her work published. She was a member of Haywood Writers and contributed to their publication, Sunburst. She was the daughter of the late Lawrence and Bessie Louise Moore Tilley. She was preceded in death by two brothers, Richard Keith and Frank Dale Tilley. Surviving are her husband of 52 years, Charles Kenneth Wike Sr.; three daughters, Kenna Wiggins of Springfield, Mo., Susan Marie Lanier of Cullowhee and Melisa Anne Montoya of Tempe, Ariz.; one son, Charles Kenneth Jr. Wike of Sugar Hill, Ga.; one brother, Darrell R. Tilley of Waynesville; and seven grandchildren. Memorials may be made to Haywood County Hospice, 560 Leroy George Drive, Clyde, N.C. 28721; St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, Tenn. 38105-1905; or Wycliffe Bible Translators, 11221 John Wycliffe Blvd., Orlando, Fla. 32823.
Shelby Davis Shelby Jean Davis, 63, of Cherokee Circle, Sparta, Tenn., died Monday, June 30, 2003, in Fort Payne, Ala. Funeral services will be held at noon today (Thursday) at Hunter Funeral Home. Burial will be in Mt. Gilead Cemetery. Brother Kenneth Clayton will officiate. She was born March 8, 1940, in Jackson County to the late Victor and Eva Ashe Connor. She was a housewife. Surviving are her husband, J.C. Davis; one daughter, Tammie Davis of Sparta; two sons, Brett Davis of Sparta and Darrell Davis of Alabama; three sisters, Mildred Bryson and Doris Fowler, both of North Carolina, and Shiloh Blankenship of Illinois; one brother, Henry Connor of North Carolina; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
David Adams David Cecil Adams, 56, of Jackson County's Willetts community, died unexpectedly Monday, June 23, 2003. Funeral services were held at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 28, at Melton-Riddle Funeral Home. The Revs. Tony Lankford and Mark Atkins officiated. Burial was in Garrett-Hillcrest Cemetery. Pallbearers were Mike Moss, Michael Penley, Johnny Walker, Todd Lankford, Danny Lankford and Steve Hyatt. A native of Fulton County, Ga., he lived the past two months in Jackson County. He was a self-employed cabinet installer and the son of Frances Turner Dobbs of Union City, Ga., and the late Cecil Adams. Surviving are his wife of 26 years, Shelia Davis Adams; two daughters, Cissy Walker of McDonough, Ga., and Amy Saiia of Sylva; two sons, Steve Moss of Stockbridge, Ga., and Mike Moss of Sylva; one sister, Kathy Lankford of Wakasa, Ga.; and six grandchildren.
Henry Westbrooks Henry W. Westbrooks, 75, of Whittier, died Sunday, June 29, 2003, at Mission-St. Joseph Hospital in Asheville. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. today (Thursday) in the chapel of Moody Funeral Home. The Rev. Johnny Ray Davis will officiate. Burial will be in Fairview Memorial Gardens. A native of Miller, Ga., he had lived in Bartow, Fla., for 58 years and had been a summer resident of Nations Creek community for the past 12 years. He was a veteran of World War II, serving in the U.S. Navy. While living in Bartow, he served for 12 years on the Civil Service Board and was a shop steward for the GTE Employees Union. He was retired from GTE Telephone Co. after 32 years. Son of the late Leon W. and Johnnie Beatrice Westbrooks, he was a member of Main Street Baptist Church in Bartow. Surviving are his wife, of 57 years, Vivian Y. Westbrooks; one son, Tom Westbrooks of Lakeland, Fla.; and one sister.
Charles Rutan Charles Anderson Rutan, 48, of Fountainhead Drive, Cashiers, died unexpectedly Wednesday, June 25, 2003, at his residence. Funeral services were held at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, June 28, 2003, at the Church of the Good Shepherd. The Rev. Virginia Hill Monroe conducted the service. A native of Tampa, Fla., he was manager of Ingles Supermarket in Cashiers. He was a troop leader with the Boys Scouts of American while living in Florida. He was a son of the late Charles Hartley and Nancy Ruth Anderson Rutan. Surviving are his wife, Linda Means Rutan; one daughter, Charlsey Whitney Rutan; four sisters, Patricia Dillow of Greenville, S.C., Betty Erbe of Zephyrhills, Fla., Charlotte Mitchell of Tennessee and Cathy Strauss of Whittier, Calif.; and one brother, David Eugene Rutan of Seffner, Fla. Donations may be made to Charley's Family and Charlsey' educational fund by sending them to Charles Rutan, P.O. Box 2006, Cashiers, N.C. 28717. Moody Funeral Home assisted the family with arrangements.
Wiestse de Hoop Wiestse "Dee" de Hoop died Friday, June 27, 2003. Visitation was held at 2 p.m. Saturday, June 28, in Parkwood/Parkview in Snellville, Ga. His ashes will be spread in the North Carolina mountains at a later date. He was born in 1916 in the Netherlands, son of Rauke and Neeltje de Hoop. During the German occupation of the Netherlands, he completed his education and rose through the teaching ranks to become school principal. He later moved to Aruba, where he founded the first school for exceptional children. In 1958, he emigrated with his family to the United States, where he taught while pursuing his graduate eduction. He received his Ed.D. from the University of Georgia and became professor and section head of special education at West Georgia College. He moved to Eastern Kentucky University to become founding chairman of the Department of Special Education. In his retirement, he lived in Cibolo, Texas, Roswell, Ga., Loganville, Ga., and Snellville, Ga. He was preceded in death by his wife of 59 years, Frieda, who died in 2001. Surviving are two sons, Herman De Hoop of Houston and Niels de Hoop of Baton Rouge; one daughter, Elisabeth St. John of Atlanta and Cullowhee; nine grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
Intherani Aldis Intherani Nayagam "Rani" Aldis, 59, of Mitchell Road, Sylva, died in Malawi, Africa, Friday, April 18, 2003, of injuries sustained in an automobile accident. At the time of her death, she was living in Malawi with her husband, William Aldis, M.D., the World Health Organization representative to Malawi. A memorial service will be held Tuesday, July 8, at 3 p.m. at Sylva First United Methodist Church. A Hindu service was held in Blantyre, Malawi, on Thursday, April 24.
Allen Huffstickler Allen "Hippie" Wilson Huffstickler, 54, of Webster, died Saturday, June 28, 2003, at Mission-St. Joseph's Hospital in Asheville. Funeral services were held at 4 p.m. Tuesday, July 1, at United Baptist Church in Lowell. The Rev. Blane Phelps officiated. Burial was in Gaston Memorial Park, Gastonia. A memorial service will be held at a later date in Sylva. He was born July 9, 1948, in Gaston County, son of the late Ralph Huffstickler. He was a 1966 graduate of Hunter Huss High School in Gastonia and former owner of Boothill Auto Sales in Lowell. Surviving are one son, Travis Allen Gary Huffstickler; his mother, Roberta Nichols Huffstickler of Gastonia; one brother, Gary Huffstickler; and two sisters, Kathy Huffsticker of Stanley and Teresa Bandy of Gastonia. Melton-Riddle Funeral Home is in charge of local arrangements.