Jimmie Sue Smith, age 94, of Tuscaloosa, Ala., passed away August 16, 2020 at Cullman Regional Medical Center. Services will be 3 p.m. Sunday, August 23, 2020, at Heritage Chapel with Dr. Ken Dunivant officiating. Burial will follow in the Tuscaloosa Memorial Park with Heritage Chapel Funeral Home & Cremations, a Dignity Memorial Provider, directing. Visitation will be 2-3 p.m. Sunday, August 23, 2020 at the funeral home.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Russell and Eupha Mae Morgan; husband, Earle; and daugthers, Ann and Melanie.
Survivors include her sons, Dr. William E. Smith (Sherrie) of Cullman, Ala. and Russell E. Smith (Linda) of Pelham, Ala.; sister, Peggy Spence of Charlotte, N.C.; grandchildren, Jim, Morgan (David), Hillary (Brady), Lindsay (Kyle), Logan and Sidney (Dillon); nine great-grandchildren and special friends, Sheryl and Mary.
Jimmie Sue was born in Spindale, North Carolina October 13, 1925. After graduating High School in Spindale she graduated Mars Hill College and attended Meredith College in Raleigh, N.C. She met the man she would marry in September of 1945. Jimmie Sue and Earle married in September 1946. She anchored their home as he finished college in Raleigh. She always met the adversities of life with courage, compassion and a strength that held her family together through the loss of her two daughters, Ann and Melanie and ultimately her husband Earle.
She loved to bake. Her cakes were always spoken for before the doors opened at the church bazaars. Her yeast rolls would melt in your mouth. No doubt because she activated the yeast in water warmed precisely to 100 degrees F “confirming with a candy thermometer”. And, her Christmas Tree cookies were a perpetual holiday tradition in her home.
She loved her church and made certain the church was central to her family activities. While living in Demopolis she was a regular in the choir and after moving to Tuscaloosa made the First United Methodist Church and Lee Sunday School class her church home for the remainder of her life.
Jimmie Sue was a stickler for details and followed instructions to the letter. No doubt this trait was invaluable as she navigated medical issues near the end of her life. The final year of her life was perhaps her most trying as she gracefully endured the maladies that accompanied her aging and the medical interventions which afforded additional good time with her family. Jimmie Sue passed away peacefully surrounded by her family acknowledging satisfaction in having lived a full and joyful life. Her final words...”I Love You”
Honorary pallbearers are the loving staff of Morningside Assisted Living and the Lee Sunday School Class.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First United Methodist Church, Tuscaloosa.
Condolences may be offered at www.HeritageChapelTuscaloosa.com.
