Horacetine Vann

Mrs. Vann was born in Brooks County near Quitman, in South Georgia. Being the youngest of three daughters, she was blessed with the “one of a kind” name Horacetine after her father, Horace, acknowledging the son her parents never received. She was an avid reader and spent her childhood swimming and playing with friends in the rural areas near Dade City, Florida.

Although a daughter of the Depression, she had a carefree spirit that loved others and believed that the good in any situation outweighed the bad and was worthy of her focus. She lived the belief that every single person was worth befriending, no matter how annoying.

She met the love of her life, Alvah, in Miami, Florida while attending secretarial school.

Four children were born to them while living in Florida. Their life together was captivated by the joy of friends, picnics, grandchildren and their involvement in Southern Baptist churches where they lived. Her children’s spouses, grandchildren, step children, and step grandchildren were loved and embraced fully into her family circle.

Although unable to cook when she married at 19, she quickly learned from Alvah’s family that food was welcomed by most and ministered to their souls. Through the years she learned which son’s-in-law liked sweet tea, unsweet tea or no tea. It was appreciated and sometimes humorous when the drink she offered was fermented or spoiled. Days before the family gathered, Horactine would prepare the favorite foods of each person visiting which ranged from Dutch Babies, Summer Soup, Chocolate Icebox Cake, and Creamed Tuna on Pancakes.

Horacetine’s Southern charm made her a light to many. She believed that lipstick and jewelry were mandatory every day, and that shoes must coordinate with the outfit worn. She was loved for her infectious smile and the kindnesses she showed to those around her. Her faith motivated her to bring life to others, sometimes by meeting physical needs with a casserole or cake and other times by what she did for them. In early years, she helped friends care for children; later, she spent 10 years faithfully visiting Alvah in a nursing home; most recently, she delivered roses buds to new-comers at Coventry Place retirement center.

Horacetine Vann lived well and finished well. As Proverbs 31 says, “Her children arise and call her blessed… Many women do noble things, but she surpassed them all.” She was a woman who revered God, and is now at home with her savior.