Mary Eva Williams, 91, went to be with the Lord on Thursday, August 2, 2018.
Formerly of Lewisburg, WV, she spent the last 10 years living with her granddaughter, Jules, in Asheville, NC.
She passed peacefully at home with her granddaughter after suffering for many years with COPD and, recently, lung cancer.
Born April 27, 1927, at Keever, WV, she was the daughter of Cassie and Garland Shortridge.
She was a member of Grace Baptist Church in Asheville, where she had a letter-writing ministry.
After retiring from The General Lewis Inn, she volunteered over 1,500 hours at Greenbrier Valley Medical Center and was a hospice volunteer. She sat with and gave comfort to many at the end of their lives. She was a member of the First Baptist Church of Fairlea, WV, for many years while living in Quinwood, WV. She was an active member of Quinwood Baptist Church where she was in charge of the food committee and Vacation Bible School.
During the Great Depression, when she was 6, her mother passed away. Her father abandoned the children. She experienced hunger and tremendous hardship. She remained in contact with all her siblings, including those from her father’s second marriage. As a result, her mission and joy in life was to feed the hungry and help anyone in need. She was a happy, very caring, loving person. She radiated that. She was a source of comfort to all who had the pleasure of knowing her. She was a voracious reader. She enjoyed playing cards, watching the birds, square dancing and traveling. She loved the Lord, and that love embodied the way she lived her life. At Grace Baptist Church, she started the tradition of holding hands and saying the Lord’s Prayer at the end of Sunday School class. Mary used to tell her granddaughter, “Give your best to the world and the world will give its best to you.”
In addition to her parents, she is preceded in death by her daughter, Doris, and her husband, Averal “Abe” Williams. She is also preceded in death by her brother, Melvin Shortridge and his wife Eva; her sisters, Goldie and her husband, Arvad Bills, Irene Shortridge, and Lillie Markham; her brothers, Calvin Shortridge, Marvin Shortridge, and his wife, Ada, Raymond Shortridge, and his wife, Mary.
She is survived by great-granddaughter, Ayesha Ahsanuddin; her granddaughter, Jules Sears, of Asheville; her grandson, Casey Sears and his wife, Julie, of Johnson City, TN; her stepson, Mike Williams, of Valrico, FL; his daughters, Laura and Karen; her brother, Glenn Mace, and his wife, Judy, of Prestenburg, KY, and her sister-in-law, Alice Shortridge, of Lewisburg. She is also survived by many nieces, nephews, friends and Linda Yarger and husband, Rich, of Verona, KY, who considered Mary to be a second mother to her.
Funeral service will be 2 p.m. on Saturday, August 11, at the Wallace & Wallace Funeral Home in Lewisburg. Burial will follow at the Wallace Memorial Cemetery at Clintonville, WV.
Friends may call one hour prior to the service at the funeral home.
Donations of sympathy may be made to Grace Baptist Church, 718 Haywood Road, Asheville, NC 28806.
Online condolences may be written by visiting WallaceandWallaceFH.com.
Wallace & Wallace Funeral Home in Lewisburg is in charge of arrangements.
Obituary originally published in the August 6, 2018 edition of The West Virginia Daily News.
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