Desser Ree Frost

Lenora “Desser Ree” Frost (100), of Tallahassee, Florida, went peacefully in her home after listening to one of her favorite songs “Amazing Grace” when her angel came to take her home to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus on Thursday, August 15, 2024. She was born on December 31, 1923 in Raleigh, NC and was the daughter of the late Joseph O. Huggins and Nettie Lee Dawson Huggins. She is survived by her two remaining sons Gary Bernard Frost (Betty Frost) and Raymond Allen Frost (Linda Kiser), her three daughters Susan Allene Frost Ives, Janet Lenore Frost Collins (Anderson D. Collins, Jr.) and Anne Catherine Frost (Parker Windham Grant); 11 grandchildren, 18 great grandchildren and 14 great, great grandchildren. Desser Ree’s first son, Josey Gilbert Frost; grandson, Timothy Van Matthews, granddaughter, Gara Beth Frost, and all the other family members who had gone before her were waiting for her when she entered Heaven’s Gates.

Desser Ree was married to the love of her life, the late Allen Benjamin Frost on December 19, 1941. They were married for over 63 years. Early in their marriage, Desser Ree and Allen had 3 boys and 1 girl who were like doorsteps. They waited 9 years to have their 5th child and another 9 years for their 6th child. While Allen was doing his service in the US Army in Europe during World War II, times and financial resources were short. Desser Ree cared for their children and lived with her mother and father on their farm in Lamar South Carolina. When Allen returned from the war, she got a job at the A-Q Mills in Timmonsville, SC making silk cloth on the night shifts. Her father had passed away at the age of 57 and his farm was given to Allen and Desser Ree. Financial resources were short so, she worked the night shifts at the mill. During the day, she worked hard by the side of her husband and their oldest children on their Lamar, SC tobacco and cotton farm to provide resources to raise and feed their children. In 1964, she and Allen moved their family to Woodbridge, VA, where Allen worked as a security guard at the Pentagon and also the Federal Bureau of Prisons in Washington, DC. With this move, Desser Ree became a full-time homemaker and continued to care for her mother and her three youngest children at that time who moved with them to VA. She and Allen had their last child while in VA. In 1968, Allen transferred to the Tallahassee Federal Correctional Institution and moved Desser Ree and his family to Tallahassee Florida in 1968. Desser Ree continued to be a homemaker and was a caretaker of her mother until her mother’s passing in 1982 at the age of 96.

Desser Ree enjoyed being a seamstress and made most of her children’s clothes. She also loved to cook and as a hobby she made beautiful comforters, throws and pillows for her home and for gifts to family and friends. She was an avid reader, especially the bible and Christian novels. She loved to listen to gospel music and watch Christian TV programming in her spare time.

Desser Ree throughout her life honored her parents and was a loving wife who respected her husband. All of her children would say that she was a filled with kindness and love for her children and her grands. They would say that God gave her a giving heart. Due to the economic times that she lived through, she worked multiple jobs and sacrificed her needs to ensure that her children had the clothing, food and other needs met before her own. She was truly a Proverbs 31 Woman.

Church and her Lord were always very important to her. She and Allen raised their children to Love the Lord and others as Jesus commanded, respect their elders, attend church, read their bible, pay tithes, help those less fortunate, and keep the Sabbath Holy. She taught her children and grandchildren the importance of loving Jesus and obeying the Lord’s word and commandments. She and Allen always kept their children and grandchildren in their prayers for protection, salvation, healing and for the needs of their families to be met. Desser Ree was a faithful member of the Christian Heritage Church in Tallahassee, the Church’s Young at Heart Group, and assisted with benevolent services to provide meals for families who lost their love ones or who were recovering from health issues.

After Allen’s passing in 2003, she attended the Nazarene Church for years until in 2016 when her health started to decline due to a stroke, and other conditions that she needed part-time care assistance. After a fall due to a severe kidney infection in the Fall of 2020 she came close to death several times during a 3-month period as she fought for her life. God restored her life, but she was bedridden and required 24/7 care. The Lord blessed her by orchestrating the approval of financial assistance which allowed her to remain in her home. She gave God the glory and thanks for her healing and sending her loving and kind caretakers and physicians who were angels sent by God to protect and care for her. The family is so appreciative of what each of these caretakers did to make her comfortable, to lift up her spirit and to make it possible for her to remain in her home until her passing.

During her 90’s and when she reached 100 in December 31, 2023, her caretakers and others would ask her what was her secret to her long life. She would say it was honoring her parents and grandparents; being a respectful, loving and faithful wife; loving her children and teaching them about her Lord, living a clean life and putting God and family first. She definitely spent her life doing all of these things to honor God and her family and friends. Even though her last 2 years were rough due to her mental decline and health issues, she often worried about why the Lord had not taken her home and had fear and doubt about passing on like most people do. Her children told her that God was not finished with her yet and that he was still working on her huge mansion he was building for her in heaven. However, she continued to fight the good fight to keep her faith in God until he called her home. Her family will greatly miss her, but we know that we will see her again when God calls us home. She will be greatly missed.

The Family will be holding a public visitation and viewing on Saturday, August 24, 2024 from 11:00AM – 12:00PM, followed by Desser Ree’s Celebration of Life service from 12:00PM until 1:00PM in the Chapel at the Culley’s MeadowWood Funeral Home, 700 Timberlane Road, Tallahassee, Florida and the MeadowWood Cemetery Graveside Committal and Final Prayer from 1:00PM – 1:30PM.

In lieu of flowers, a donation may be made in Desser Ree’s name to Big Bend Hospice or to her favorite charity, Samaritan’s Purse.