Paula Marie Wetherington

Our beloved Paula Marie Wetherington was born on Monday, December 21, 1959, at Saint Luke’s Hospital in New Bern, the only child of Paul Julius Wetherington, Jr. (1929-2007) and Nannie Marie Sutton (1934-2018). She was the granddaughter of P. J. Wetherington, Sr. (1903-1962) and Laura Gladys Hawkins (1904-1971) and Robert Kennedy Sutton (1908-1958) and Josie Divine Gaskins (1914-1992). She passed away on Sunday, November 18, 2018, at UNC Chapel Hill Hospital surrounded by her close cousins.

Paula loved learning and excelled at Riverside School and later at the Dane School, where she was valedictorian, graduating a year early to attend Meredith College, where she earned a B. A. degree. After graduating from Meredith, the world was her oyster and she had many opportunities, even being recruited by the FBI! She worked for a telecommunications company near Raleigh and enjoyed building a career and life in the Triangle, making new friends and participating in community activities. After returning to New Bern, she worked for Stericap Systems for several years. She was also employed by the Sun Journal as an advertising representative while her father was circulation manager. She was instrumental in establishing what is now the annual Home and Garden Show sponsored by the Sun Journal. On occasion, Paula also wrote articles for the Sun Journal about flowers and gardening.

In her early thirties, Paula was diagnosed with myasthenia gravis (MG) and given only a year to live. However, through the assistance of her doctors, the love and care of her parents, close family and friends, her sheer determination to live, and her abiding faith, she proved them wrong and lived a productive and rewarding life despite being challenged with many health issues along the way.

And oh what a life Paula lived! From her youth until her passing, she was as active as possible in community organizations and her beloved church, Tabernacle Baptist. She gave her heart to Jesus as a young girl, a defining moment of her life. At Tabernacle, she participated in the Delia Phillips Circle, BMW, the Lighthouse Ringers Handbell Choir, the Flower Ministry, and Vacation Bible School. She also assisted with the Samaritan’s Purse Unity Dinner and was part of the monthly cooking crew that made meals for the church members and those less fortunate. Additionally, she participated in the Christian Women After 5 and Prayer Connection groups.

Paula loved helping people and providing support for those in need. She was instrumental in the formation of the Coastal Ostomy Support Group, serving as a facilitator and getting local restaurants to donate wonderful food for their meetings. She was a supporter of the Carolinas Chapter for MG, and often helped others learn how to live a better life while coping with the disease. She was also a Shamrock Shopper for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Paula loved to travel and did so all over the world, sometimes with her mother, who was her best friend and cheerleader. She visited nearly every state in the U. S. and more than forty-five countries and most of the world’s continents, even Antarctica, as she just had to see the penguins. While she enjoyed cruising the seas for pleasure on many occasions, she travelled with a mission to help others. She participated in President Jimmy Carter’s Friendship Force International, as well as travelling with other service groups to aid those in need around the world. She always had interesting and fun stories to share about the people she met, and remained in contact with many of them throughout her life.

Paula loved flowers and all things beautiful. She expressed her love of nature by creating with her mother a restful home and beautiful yard for the family and guests to enjoy. Her attention to detail was extraordinary. She used her many talents in serving as vice-president of the New Bern Garden Club, where for eleven years she was the coordinator of the club’s monthly speakers and programs. In 2011, she received the Becky Farmer Award from the club for her many contributions, including serving as a trustee of the Judge Gaston Law Office, trustee of the Margaret Rawls Stancil Fund, and trustee of the Scholarship and Educational Trust. Paula’s flower arrangements were gorgeous and appreciated by all who received them. She also designed and created miniature floral arrangements each year to accompany food delivered by Meals on Wheels. Paula was instrumental in having the crepe myrtle designated as New Bern’s official tree.

Paula loved the South and history in general and she participated in several local historical groups. Her ancestor Solomon Wetherington (1761-1840) served in the Revolution, and it was said that when he first enlisted, he was sent home because he was too young, but then went back a second time and was allowed to stay. Paula always said that determination was in her genes. In 1982, to honor her ancestor, she joined the Richard Dobbs Spaight Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution. She served as Chapter Regent 2005-2007, having previously held three other chapter offices. She also served with great enthusiasm for many years as a page at both the annual NCSDAR State Conferences and the NSDAR Continental Congress in Washington, D. C. She served as the Constitution Week chairman for a number of years and performed as “Patriotic Polly” at the North Carolina History Center for chapter functions and in local schools.

Paula was active with the New Bern Historical Society, serving as a character for Ghost Walk and as a guide for the society’s Spring Homes and Gardens Tour, along with other members of the New Bern Garden Club. She was a charter member of the Family History Society of Eastern North Carolina and was instrumental in assisting when the families of early settlers gathered to celebrate the 300th Anniversary of New Bern in 2010 and of Craven County in 2012. In 2014, she served as co-chair of the Blue & Gray Supper to commemorate those affected locally by the War between the States. She was a proud supporter of the Heritage Park Project and it was her wish to see it completed to honor all those who have called this area home. Paula was, from time-to-time, the chair of family reunions honoring her mother’s Whitford and Purifoy families. She was always glad to see her cousins, both those who were local and those from out-of-state.

Paula loved food, fun, and fellowship. She enjoyed finding new recipes and was known for her delectable Martha Washington creams, which were in high demand during Christmas. Through the years, she and her mother won several awards at the Craven County Fair for their baking, canning, and other items. Paula was a true Southern hostess who made sure to always have something sweet and something savory at every party. She always enjoyed going out for a nice meal at The Chelsea, the old Moore’s, Famous, Carolina Grill, Outback, K&W, or down in the county or to the coast for some delicious seafood.

Paula is survived by a host of loving family and friends, too many to name. Of special note are her dear cousins Tammy Manning Smith (Gary), who was Paula’s advocate and caregiver, and Tammy’s mother Linda Gaskins Manning (David), and Tammy’s son Derek Smith. She is also survived by two aunts, Barbara Sutton Willis and Joy Ballard Sutton. A dedicated friend, Marie Ruel, greatly helped the family in caring for both Paula and her mother Marie.

The theme of this memorial and of Paula’s life is love. She loved her God, her church, her family, her friends, her nation, and her world. As one friend said, “Paula was a force of nature in a wonderful way!” She shared her humor, her enthusiasm, and her joy for life with everyone she met. For those of us who had the privilege to know and be loved by Paula, we are fortunate and will mourn her passing from this side until we meet again just inside the Eastern Gate over there on that happy resurrection morn. To those who did not know Paula, we trust that you will be inspired by her life and be a ray of sunshine in the lives of those around you.

We will celebrate Paula’s wonderful life on Monday, December 3, 2018, at 1 p.m. at the Tabernacle Baptist Church, 616 Broad Street in New Bern, with the Rev. Scott Gleason officiating. Her inurnment, along with her also recently departed mother, will be private at New Bern Memorial Cemetery at a later date. After Paula’s service, family and friends are welcome to celebrate the lives of Paula and her mother Marie at The Chelsea Restaurant, 335 Middle Street, (please take the elevator to the upstairs front dining room).

If you would like to honor Paula’s memory, please consider making a donation to one of the following groups dear to her heart: CampCareFree.org, 275 CareFree Lane, Stokesdale, NC 27357, which provides chronically ill children a free week to experience the joy of camp life and where Paula served as a counselor; the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America, Myasthenia.org, 355 Lexington Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New York 10017, to aid in finding a cure; or take flowers or something delicious and visit with someone in need to brighten their day.

May our dear Paula and her beloved mother Marie now rest in the peace that passeth all understanding and in the joy of everlasting life with their ancestors.