Gaynelle Johnson Shively

Born February 14, 1930 in Lynchburg, she was the daughter of Willie Lyman Johnson and Daisy Estelle (Cotton) Wood Johnson. She was predeceased by her loving husband, Edwin S.(Ed) Shively, Jr., who died on October 12, 2001. She was also predeceased by three brothers, Lyman Johnson and Edward Johnson of Lynchburg, Virgina and Harold Johnson of Gretna, Virginia.

She is survived by her two daughters, Catherine Estelle (Stella) Shively and her husband William (Bill) Wilson, Jr. of Chichester, New Hampshire and Robbin Ann Shively and her partner Jeffrey Basseches of Kittery, Maine. She is also survived by her sister, Rebecca Harker and her husband Jack of Lynchburg, Virginia and numerous nieces and nephews and their families.

Gay attended Longwood College, played on the basketball team and worked at Nationwide Insurance before marrying Ed Shively. During the Korean War, she and Ed lived in the high Sierras near Bridgeport, California while Ed was stationed at the Marine Cold Weather Training Center. When Ed became a Postal Inspector they lived in New York City and Syosset, New York. They moved from New York to Raleigh, North Carolina and settled in Charlotte, North Carolina, where they lived for decades. In Charlotte, Gay was active in the Charlotte Women’s Club and the local Garden and Bridge Clubs. She and Ed were active members of the Selwyn Avenue Presbyterian Church, and enjoyed teaching Sunday School and chaperoning youth activities, especially Christmas International House, which provided housing and food for international students over the holiday break. They also housed foreign exchange students year round for several years. Gay and her friend Trudy Wurtele operated Candyland Party House, a children’s birthday party business, featuring Sidney the monkey. They partied and traveled with their neighbors and friends Bob and Agnes Nichols, John and Trudy Wurtele, Gene and Thelma Proffit and Helen and Jim Forbes. With the help of Jim and Helen Forbes, Ed and Gay built a cabin on Lake Norman and spent summer weekends there boating, fishing, swimming and relaxing. When Ed retired, they moved to Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina and also spent time in Fleetwood Falls, North Carolina at their mountain house “Totem”. While living in Ocean Isle Beach, they enjoyed swimming, fishing, shrimping, hosting friends and relatives and were active in the Shallotte Presbyterian Church. In the 1990’s they returned to Lynchburg, settling on Savoy Place. Ed and Gay both served as deacons and also helped establish the columbarium garden at Saint Andrew Presbyterian Church. After Ed died, Gay moved to Westminster Canterbury, initially living in an apartment and moving on assisted living and then nursing care.

Gay loved gardening, crafting, sewing, painting, decorating, antiquing, parties and shopping at the Farm Basket. She played golf and bridge and enjoyed all games. She loved decorating for and celebrating holidays, sewing costumes and dressing as a witch to hand out candy at Halloween and crafting holiday banners for her church. She was a prankster and notorius for standing on her head at Talbots. She and Ed loved to travel and among other places visited the Southwest, Nova Scotia and Scotland.

A columbarium garden service will be held at a date to be determined at Saint Andrew Presbyterian Church in Lynchburg. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Westminster Canterbury, Saint Andrews Presbyterian Church or a charity of choice.

The family would like to thank the many staff members at Westminster Canterbury in Lynchburg for the supervision and care they provided for so many years, with special thanks to Gay’s honorary daughter and Stella and Robbin’s honorary sister, Ginny Long, who was first Gay’s friend and then her caregiver, and to Westminster Canterbury’s hospice staff and chaplain for their recent care and support.