Mildred Elizabeth Anderson Silver

Mildred Elizabeth Anderson Silver went home to be with the Lord on Sunday, May 1. She was 88 years old. Mrs. Silver was born on November 14, 1927 to Thomas Walter Anderson and Annie Estelle Michael Anderson in Marion, North Carolina. Her early childhood days were spent in and around Marion with her family on the family farm. Adult responsibilities came quickly when her mother passed away when she was just 12 years old.

Following graduation from Glenwood High School in Glenwood, North Carolina, she earned an A.B. degree in Public School Music from Lenoir-Rhyne College in Hickory, North Carolina. She used this training to teach public school music for six years in Rockingham and Concord, North Carolina. She then enjoyed 32 years of teaching hundreds of private piano students out of her home in Charlotte. She was certified by the NCMTA and gave the gift of music to many who are still playing today. She deeply loved and cared for her students, encouraging them all with her devotion and concern. She also served as church pianist for several churches through the years, including the former Enderly Park Baptist Church in Charlotte. Mrs. Silver was a member of the Charlotte Piano Teachers Forum and the Charlotte Music Club. In addition to music, Mrs. Silver was a talented water color and oil painting artist. Her artistic gifts brought much joy to her and countless others through the years. These gifts will live on through the artwork she leaves behind and the countless songs played around the world by her piano students.

Mrs. Silver married her husband, Joseph William (Bill) Silver, in 1951. They were faithfully married for 48 and a half years, until his unexpected death in 2000. She was a loving, giving, patient, and sacrificial mother to her three children who survive her, Joseph Norman (Joe) Silver of Charlotte, Elizabeth Anne Silver of Charlotte, and Dr. John Robert (Bobby) Silver and wife, Laura, of Charlotte. She was a very special “Mamaw” to Bobby and Laura’s three daughters, Hannah, Lydia, and Abigail. She deeply valued and enjoyed the blessing of being a grandmother and watching her granddaughters grow up over the last 19 years. Also surviving are two brothers, Herman Anderson of Lenoir and Donald Anderson of Old Fort. Her parents, three sisters, and one brother preceded her in death.

Mrs. Silver had a deep faith in Jesus Christ. In fact, that faith is deeper today than it ever was when she was alive, now that she’s seen her Lord and Savior face to face. She wanted to make sure that her funeral focused on the assurance of heaven. She and her family have been active members at Hickory Grove Baptist Church for many years.

Family visitation will occur at the McEwen Funeral Service, Mint Hill Chapel on Thursday evening, from 6:30 until 8:30 pm. Her funeral will be held at the Hickory Grove Baptist Church on Friday morning, May 6, at 10:00 am, with the Rev. John Harrill officiating. Her Sunday School class, the “Love Class”, will sit together in her honor. Burial will follow the funeral at 2:30 pm in the Glenwood Cemetery next to her husband and parents in Glenwood, North Carolina.

Memorials can be made to the Hickory Grove Baptist Church, 6050 Hickory Grove Road, Charlotte, North Carolina 28215.

Funeral arrangements are through the McEwen Funeral Service, Mint Hill Chapel in Mint Hill, North Carolina and the Westmoreland Funeral Home of Marion, North Carolina.