Mary Dare Hughes Burnette

Mary Dare Burnette of Raleigh, North Carolina, passed away peacefully at home on Thursday, October 23, 2025, following a brief illness. Born in Charlottesville, Virginia on April 6, 1927, Ms. Burnette was the daughter of Willis Bryan Hughes and Aurora Borealis Farrar and was the last surviving child of the Hughes family. Her siblings were Lucy Marjorie, Wallace Bradley, Martha, Harry Hamilton, Willis Waddell, and Hunter. Mary Dare often recounted heartwarming stories of growing up in this close-knit family and with her brothers and sisters whom she loved without condition.

Mary Dare, known as “Suckie” by her family, graduated from Charlottesville’s Lane High School in 1946. She later married and settled first in Charlottesville, Virginia before moving to Greensboro, North Carolina and then to Raleigh, North Carolina along with her two sons, Jimmy and Ricky. The Burnette family lived in Raleigh’s Oakwood neighborhood where they maintained a home and a boarding house for students attending Hardbarger Business College. Mary Dare spent many years caring for the students boarding with the Burnette family and assuring them a safe “home away from home.”

In the 1960’s, Mary Dare accepted a position with the Students Supply Store at NC State University where she worked in various roles until her retirement in 1990 after nearly thirty years of dedicated service to the university. She often spoke fondly of her time at the Students Supply Store and recalled how much she enjoyed supporting and helping students who relied upon her for assistance.

Mary Dare was known by family and friends alike as an eternal optimist and a determined woman with an adventurous spirit. Her love for Jimmy and Ricky was unquestioned, and she constantly offered them guidance and advice that reflected the values she had acquired from her parents and siblings. She emphasized the importance of self-reliance and honesty in all facets of life, and she truly modeled for her sons the value of empathy and concern for others. Mary Dare was known for her unconditional love for the dogs who blessed her life – Rascal, Georgie and Cheetoh. She accepted each one as a beloved family member and always made sure they had a special place in her heart.

Mary Dare is survived by her sons Jim Burnette and husband, Stephen Davis of Raleigh, NC; Ricky Burnette and wife Rita of Taylors, SC; grandchildren, Shauna Burnette, Kristina Burnette, and Lauren Davis Krueger and husband William; great-grandchildren, Ila and Will Krueger, who will forever cherish her memory. Family survivors are her sister-in-law, Joyce Hughes, Charlottesville, VA; and many treasured nieces and nephews across the United States. Mary Dare also considered her two forever friends a treasured blessing in her life: Margie Creel, her former neighbor from the Mordecai neighborhood, and Lou Davis who always offered words of encouragement and support in their many conversations.

The family acknowledges and generously thanks the clinical staff of the Medi Home Health Agency/Hospice for their constant, loving care during Mary Dare’s recent illness.

Mary Dare’s Memorial Service will be at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 1, 2025, at Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, 300 St. Mary’s Street, Raleigh, NC 27605. Private interment will follow at a later date in Charlottesville, Virginia.

In lieu of flowers, the family encourages friends to contribute to a charity of their choice or to the Hayes-Barton Baptist Church Broadcast Ministry, 1800 Glenwood Avenue, Raleigh, NC 27608. Mary Dare was a faithful worshiper each Sunday morning when she joined the Hayes-Barton Baptist Church worship service through their television broadcast.