Rolaine Mann Merchant

Martha Rolaine Mann Merchant, born in Birmingham, Alabama, March 24, 1931, died Tuesday, July 7, 2026 in Milton, Georgia. She is survived by her four children: Martha Alice Merchant Griffin, M.Ed. (Joseph Griffin) of Georgia; Barbara Marie Merchant, M.Ed. (Michael Acker) of Washington State; John Conley Merchant, III of Alabama; Roland Clayton Merchant, M.D., Sc.D. of Florida; and three grandchildren: James Winfield Hendershott of Montana; Laura Marie Griffin, B.S.N., M.S.N. of Alabama; and Robert Clayton Hendershott of Georgia. She was preceded in death by her husband John Conley Merchant, Jr. and parents Hoye Estelle Miller Mann and Roland Elbert Mann. She was the eldest of the Mann grandchildren and the youngest of the Miller grandchildren.

Music shaped her life. Her mother was a voice, elocution, and piano teacher, who taught her to sing and play the piano. Together, they would harmonize or sing along with records, often when doing chores. They would also sing at events and church. Mrs. Merchant loved music so much she became a school music teacher and a piano teacher. And like her mother, she taught her children to sing and play piano. She would sing with her daughters at home, on car rides, or at special gatherings.

Education was another important part of her life. She was the first person in her family to graduate from college. She received her associate’s degree from Snead College, bachelor’s degree from Birmingham-Southern College, and master’s degree from the University of Alabama. She was a Phi Beta Kappa, and she was proud of that achievement. She met her husband in the graduation line when they were both graduating from Birmingham-Southern College, and they married two years later.

She taught school for 35 years in Alabama and Georgia. She taught music, art, elementary school, and high school. Her last school was Susan Moore Elementary School in Blountsville, Alabama, from where she retired.

In retirement, she played in the handbell choir of First Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, Alabama, and she was very involved with the Women's Circle at Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, Alabama. She and Mr. Merchant, both history buffs, visited Boston, New York City, Washington D.C., and other historic sites they had covered in their classroom lessons. When the grandchildren came along, they delighted in spoiling them, and they would laugh at the protests of their adult children, who said, “Wait. You never allowed us to have that when we were growing up.”

After Mr. Merchant died, she lived quietly and peacefully at home with her dog and cats. She loved reading murder mysteries and watching them on television. She would often tell family members who phoned during her viewing time that she couldn’t talk at the moment because she had to go help some television detective solve a murder. She was good at grammar, which she attributed to years of taking high school and college Latin classes. The Latin classes came in handy in her later life when she would happily work crosswords and word puzzles. She was much loved and will be missed.

Visitation will be Monday, July 13, 4 pm – 6 pm at Ridout’s Valley Chapel, Homewood, Alabama. Funeral service will be Tuesday, July 14, 11 am at Ridout’s Valley Chapel.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to Oakmont Presbyterian Church in Hoover, Alabama or the Greater Birmingham Humane Society.