Lelia Gayle Middleton

Lelia Gayle Middleton, widow of William Eugene Middleton (Gene), passed away peacefully at her home on March 6, 2024, shortly after her 101st birthday. She was a lifelong resident of the Peninsula, graduating from Newport News High School in 1940.

For many years she was a member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Newport News. Later in life she attended Grace Fellowship Church and Aldersgate United Methodist Church, where she developed many close friendships and grew in her relationship with Christ.

She belonged to the Colonel Francis Mallory chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Colonial Place Women’s Club of Hampton. She loved sitting on her porch, going to yard sales, and enjoying the close friendships of her many neighbors.

Besides her husband, she was preceded in death by her first son, William Randolph Rhodes (Billy); her parents, Josiah Pitts Gayle III and Sallie Ferguson Gayle; her four brothers, Josiah Pitts Gayle IV (Joe), John Ferguson Gayle, Edward Wright Gayle and Elliot Younger Gayle; her beloved sister, Sallie Gayle Spaulding; and her brother-in-law, Frederick Paul Middleton (Freddie).

She leaves behind to cherish her memory her daughter, Sallie Ruth Rhodes (Norman Beaver), and her sons, Maury Eugene Middleton (Pam) and Troy Frederick Middleton (Kim), along with 10 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews whom she entertained with riveting stories of working in her mother’s grocery store, riding the streetcar to Buckroe Beach, as well as numerous tales of growing up in Newport News.

In her golden years she was blessed by the compassionate care of her devoted caregivers Patty Dougherty, Heather Miller Butler, Tania Demko, Annasia Ellis, Elizabeth Bassett, and Elyssa Hersom among others.

The family will receive friends on Tuesday, March 12th at 5:00 PM followed by a short Celebration of Life service and a reception at Parklawn-Wood Funeral Home, 2551 North Armistead Avenue, Hampton, VA 23666. A graveside service will be held at 11:00 AM on Wednesday, March 13th at Peninsula Memorial Park, 12750 Warwick Blvd. Newport News, VA 23606, followed by a reception at the family home, 118 Pocahontas Place, Hampton, VA 23661.