Mildred Brinson

She was born October 1, 1921, in Waynesville. Her parents were William Roy Phillips and Annie Lillian Irvine Phillips. Mildred was 16 when she graduated from Waynesville High School, where she was salutatorian.

To take a Federal Civil Service test she had to carry a large typewriter on a bus to Asheville. This turned out to be an important move in her life, as she was offered a job with the U.S. State Department in Washington, D.C. She began working there in 1942 in the building now known as the West Wing of the White House. In the evenings, she attended classes at Strayer Business College.

In 1945 she was selected to work in the United Nations Secretariat for the San Francisco Conference.

She left work to marry Capt. Milton W. Brinson on January 30, 1948, at Tyndall Air Force Base in Panama City, Florida. Over the next 25 years, she accompanied him during his military service in the US Air Force to Andrews AFB in Maryland, Armed Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Virginia, Maxwell AFB in Montgomery, Alabama, Clark AFB in the Philippines, and Langley AFB in Hampton, Virginia.

When Milton retired in 1966, the family moved to Raleigh. They became members of Hudson Memorial Presbyterian Church, where Mildred throughout her life remained an active volunteer in church work and participated in the Amazing Grays, the Presbyterian Women, and the John Knox Sunday School Class. She became active in the Duke Wellness Center and made many friends there.

She is predeceased by her husband, Milton W. Brinson, who died in 2008. They had been married 60 years. She is also predeceased by her sister, Miriam Phillips, of Waynesville, and her brother, William Roy Phillips, Jr., of Murphy, and is survived by his wife, Jo Phillips. She is survived by her son Robert Brinson and his wife, Martha Kuper Brinson, of Pittsboro; son Jack Brinson and his wife, Shirley Brinson, grandson David Brinson and his wife, Kelli Brinson, and their two children, Jakob and Benjamin, and granddaughter, Rebecca Brinson, all of Apex; niece Laura Karen Phillips of Durham; and cousin Nancy Crawford of Waynesville.

Mildred will be remembered as a loving wife, mother, devoted grandmother, great grandmother, dedicated church member, and caring friend.

An interment service will be held at Hudson Memorial Presbyterian Church in their memorial garden area, 4921 Six Forks Road, Raleigh, on Thursday, October 20th at 2:00 p.m.

The family wishes to thank the staff of The Cardinal of Raleigh, the Transitions Lifecare team, and special friend Alyce Peoples for the loving attention they gave to Mildred.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Hudson Memorial Presbyterian Church, 4921 Six Forks Rd, Raleigh, NC 27609. Arrangements by Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, Millbrook Road, Raleigh.

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