Edna Haynes Honeycutt, 80, of Columbia, a lady of great faith who felt love and compassion for all, passed away on July 12, 2018, at Tiger Place Senior Living on Bluff Creek Drive in Columbia with loving family at her side. Edna was born on September 20, 1937, in Lexington, NC, the daughter of Carl and Irma Money Haynes. She was the youngest of six children and was adored by her older siblings.
Edna was educated in the Lexington Public Schools and later became a graduate of Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC, where she received a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in biology. After graduation, she taught in the public school system, first in high school and later at the elementary level. After moving to Brevard County, Florida, she earned a Master’s degree and continued her teaching career. She was awarded numerous grants to develop mathematics curriculums for the public schools, and later became an administrator in the Brevard County Schools where she served as Director of Instructional Employment for the last seventeen years of her career, hiring teachers and moving them toward certification. Her kindness and her professionalism are fondly remembered by her many colleagues there who have remained friends to the present day.
In 1959, after graduating from Wake Forest, she married James Olen Hodges, and two daughters, Laura and Lisa, were born of this union. In 2001, she married Benjamin L. Honeycutt and moved to Columbia, MO, where she has spent the last 17 years.
She appreciated the cultural and recreational opportunities in Columbia where she was a member of Memorial Baptist Church and enjoyed participating in the Friends International group welcoming young women from foreign countries who were studying or who had husbands who were studying at the University of Missouri.
Throughout the years Edna enjoyed playing basketball in high school and singing in a number of choirs. She traveled abroad with the University Chorus of Wake Forest University and later was a member of the very large choir of First Baptist Church of Merritt Island near the Space Center in Florida. This choir was known for its spectacular Christmas pageants. Edna was a true southern lady and was known for her smiles, her kind words and encouragement to all.
Edna is survived by her daughter, Lisa Nippert (Don) of Lake Worth, FL. Her other daughter, Laura Kelley(Mark) passed away earlier. She is also survived by her husband, Ben Honeycutt, of Columbia, and by a step-son, Mark Honeycutt(Heather) of McKinney, TX, as well as two grandchildren, Carson and Brooks Honeycutt. Other survivors include twin sisters, Nancy Blackburn(Jack) of Lexington, NC, and Nell Sharpe(Don) of Cleveland, TN, as well as numerous nieces and nephews. Her three brothers, Marvin, Bryce and Don Haynes predeceased her.
A visitation, followed by a memorial service, will be held at Memorial Funeral Home in Columbia on Saturday, July 21. The visitation will begin at 1:00 PM followed by the service at 2:00 PM. Burial will be later in Rutherford County Memorial Cemetery in North Carolina. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the Kevin Honeycutt Memorial Scholarship at Hickman High School, 1104 N. Providence Road, Columbia MO 65203 or to Memorial Baptist Church, 1634 Paris Road, Columbia, MO 65201.
