Heather N. Papenfuse
Brenda “Sue” Timme Parrish
April 12, 1954 – May 2, 2004
Brenda Sue Timme Parrish, what can we say? She was a jack of all trades, whether it was redecorating the house, sewing, or helping her family and friends. She was married to a wonderful man (C.Y., III), and gave birth to five great children, (Susan, Mary Joe, Bessie, Kimberly and Carey IV). Although she has passed on to heaven and is looking down on everyone, she will never be forgotten and will always hold a special place in all of our hearts.
She was one that would be there for a number of her friends, or family at any time. She would drop everything to help anyone she could. There are many things that she did that her family and friends will hold dear to their hearts and everything that is associated with it will remind them of the wonderful person Sue was. She was a magnificent wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, friend and Servant of God and in His eyes and an example for everyone. All of the roles Sue carried can be defined in a dictionary, although the definition does not give justice to how deep each of these characteristics played in each and every life she touched and still touches today.
Whenever Sue walked into a room, she had the most welcoming smile on her face that would light up the room and everyone’s day when they saw her. She had the ability to encourage, help, and give advice (even when the advice wasn’t taken). She opened her mind, heart and soul to anyone who crossed her path, even for that matter any path she crossed. There are many things that her family cannot forget about Sue. She always managed to put herself last and her family and friends first. She went out of her way to take our calls even in the wee hours of the night, to brighten someone’s day. She invited everyone into her home no matter what.
Home is defined as the social unit formed by a family living together, or place of origin. The Parrish house was much more than a home. It was a place to relax and confide in each other. When you walked in the house you could hear, see and feel the love that enveloped the walls and everything that was held within it.
Kenneth C. Paschal
There could be a lot of words to describe my dad, but these are the ones that truly say the most about the man that I called my DAD: He was tall and thin with blue eyes that saw a lot. You see, my dad was a photographer. He saw things in ways we didn’t. Being the youngest of eight, I guess you see a lot. He always had a smile for people that passed by; he believed in not giving up and in education. You could talk to him about anything and he always had a way of giving you kind advice. He loved his grandkids and loved to express his thoughts of the world through his camera. If you saw a flower that was ugly, well, he found its beauty. If you saw a rugged, ragged old barn, he saw it differently. He captured life in pictures and now someone else has that chance because my dad was a donor.
Everyone has different memories about my Dad. He was one of the finest men I ever met; he was quiet; he was a very hard worker; he was proud; he was a person that is deeply missed and we love him. I could go on with the words about him, but, as my son said, “A picture is worth a thousand words, but the photographer was worth a million.”
In loving memory of Kenneth C. Paschal,
Your Family and Friends
Michael Ray Pate
March 17, 1987 – July 11, 2004
Michael was a free spirit who loved nature and everything it held. He loved to fish and hunt and go four-wheeling in the mud. When Michael became sixteen years old his daddy gave him his truck, which was a 1986 GMC. That truck saw many a mile down dirt roads, slinging mud and dust everywhere, and many a mile for hunting and fishing.
Michael was so very outgoing and never saw a stranger. He always wanted to lend a helping hand. He had a lot of compassion for mentally and physically handicapped people. When he was in high school there was one particular young man that the teachers could not handle because of autism, and they could always bring Michael in to cool him down. Michael always tried to be friendly to all people no matter what their race or handicap was.
That was why when Michael finally got his license I noticed that he was a donor. I questioned him but he said he would do anything to help someone.
The last year of his life he had become a member of the S and D car and truck club. Michael had always loved to tinker with things and take them apart to try and see if he could figure out how they worked. He had a lot of fun with his friends in this car club fixing up cars and trucks. The night before the accident Michael had gone to Fayetteville for a car and truck show. There was lots of laughter and fun on that night according to his friends. Michael was doing what he enjoyed. On the morning of July 11th, 2004 (the next morning) Michael and his friend Austin Letchworth left early to head home. He called his daddy around 7:30am and asked him about which exit he was supposed to take. Apparently when he was only 3 or 4 miles from Goldsboro in a town called Grantham he fell asleep at the wheel and since his friend was already asleep they both traveled off the highway. His truck hit a pecan tree on the opposite side of the road. According to state trooper reports he was going around 50 or 55 miles per hour when he fell asleep. He drifted across the yellow line and the truck accelerated up to 80 miles per hour when it collided with the tree. Michael died approximately three and a half hours afterward.
Michael may be gone but he will not be forgotten. His love for life and his friends and family will carry on forever.
Philip Perdew
Philip was born to Virge and Edna Perdew and was the brother of Judy and Barry. Philip and Sara were married thirty-four years and were blessed with two children, Eric and Amy. Philip was a wonderful, loving husband, father, son, brother, friend. He participated in all the children’s activities including softball, baseball, football, basketball, tennis, swimming, dance recitals. He was always there for his family.
Serving in the U.S. Army, he was a combat medic in Vietnam, and Fort Hood, Texas. He worked for over thirty years as a fleet mechanic; he worked the last twenty years as a bus mechanic for Rockingham County Schools.
He loved his church family at Baptist Temple Church where he served as a deacon. He volunteered for mission trips in eastern North Carolina following hurricanes and three mission trips to Honduras.
Philip had a passion for golf and played mostly at Monroeton Golf Club. He was diagnosed with esophageal cancer thirteen months before he died September 11, 2004 at age 53. Although he had surgeries, radiation, and chemotherapy at Duke University Hospital, he continued to play golf whenever he could. The game, along with his strong faith in God and love for his family, kept him focused and pushed him to keep fighting the cancer.
Because he had Lasik surgery in November 2002, his eyes could not be used for another except by means of research. We believe research is greatly needed in esophageal cancer, and we are honored to allow research in sight to be benefited by Philip’s beautiful eyes. We cherish the love and the memories of our beloved Philip.
Elmer (Skeeter) Pettet, Jr.
Skeeter was the only son of 4 children. He spent 3 1/2 years in the Navy. He loved sports – softball, water skiing, hunting, and his favorite, fishing.
Skeeter’s passion was gardening and making furniture. He was a drywall contractor by trade. After he retired he fell in love with car racing.
Elmer was a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend. He will be missed by all.
Heavenly Joy Phillips
William (Willy) Boyd Phipps
April 27, 1981 – May 4, 2004
Willy was a loving son, companion, father and brother. He had several artistic and creative talents. He designed his own tattoo that was just as unique as he was. He drew beautiful pictures in sketchbooks and created his own greeting cards to give loved ones. Another hobby of his, origami, proved to be a sense of entertainment and amazement for anyone that watched him make something out of a piece of paper. William did not enjoy school that much, but had a favorite teacher, Mrs. Testerman. Willy was adventurous, out-going and a hard worker. He had many friends and considered most of them family. In fact, Willy had begun his own family before he got sick. His son, Christian was only forty-three days old when Willy went to be with the Lord. For reasons that may never be known, the Lord decided that Willy’s place could no longer be with his family and friends. His family loves and misses him deeply, and will forever keep him close in their hearts.
James (Brandon) Price
Brandon was sent by God to bless his parents and siblings on December 7, 1982. He brought life to people. When you asked Brandon how he was doing he would always say, “I AM BLESSED”. No matter the situation that Brandon faced or how hard life could be he faced it with a smile on his face and he would say, “I AM BLESSED”. Times could be tough as they were at the end and Brandon went through some learning experiences that God allowed so that he could be a blessing to others. No matter where he was Brandon was blessed. On June 8, 2004, Brandon left us. We didn’t understand why God took him so soon. We asked why – we prayed and our God answered. YOU ARE SO BLESSED. Many of you may ask why are you blessed?
Brandon wasn’t only family, he was our friend. He left an impact on many people, a lot of those were the young men at his church The Pentecostals. To those boys Brandon was their friend, he sang with them and was in dramas with them. They laughed, they sang, and they worshipped God together.
Brandon was a dad to Matthew and Nicholas. They will only know the Brandon we knew by what we share with them. They will know their daddy loved them. Brandon was a husband to Frances. He said as for me and my house we will serve the Lord. Brandon loved his mom and stepdad so much. They were his parents – but more than that his friends. In his mom’s heart he will always stay. And there is us, myself Melissa, his only brother Joseph, and his sister, his heart, Kim. He was so much more than a brother to us. He was our smile when we didn’t have one and our friend when we needed one. Brandon always was eating a pickle.
We love you Brandon, we will never forget you. So why are we BLESSED…Brandon was baptized in the name of Jesus, Brandon was filled with the Holy Ghost, and Brandon walked hand in hand with Jesus on June 8, 2004.
WE ARE SO BLESSED…
Love, your family and friends.
William A. (Bill) Pruitt
William A. (Bill) Pruitt was born on May 25, 1944 in Rockingham, North Carolina and died on November 9, 2004 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. As a boy he was interested in sports, especially baseball and basketball, and reading. After his graduation from Rohanen High School in Rockingham, he went on to Catawba College in Salisbury, North Carolina, where he majored in French and history. He graduated magna cum laude and received the Whitener medal for outstanding male graduate. He went on to earn his PhD in French history at the University of Virginia where he was a Woodrow Wilson Fellow and a Danforth Teaching Fellow. He spent the rest of his life in an academic career. He taught at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, at Guilford College and at the North Carolina School of the Arts. After teaching history for several years at the NC School of the Arts, he became its Vice Chancellor for Arts and Academic Programs until he retired in 2002. Shortly before his retirement, in 2001, Catawba College honored him with an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree during its 150th anniversary celebration.
Bill never lost his passion for sports (he played in church softball leagues), but he pursued other interests as well. He was particularly fond of French literature and drama and he enjoyed various sorts of music. He sang tenor in the chancel choir of First Christian Church and became something of an expert in shape-note singing. He was an avid collector of southern Gospel music. He even set up a recording studio in his basement and experimented with composing music. He wrote lyrics to several pieces and one of them “Comfort” (music by North Carolina composer Wade Peeples) was written on the occasion of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack and was performed at his memorial service on November 14, 2004.
Bill was an active member of First Christian Church in Winston-Salem, where he served as an elder, chair of the stewardship and finance committee, adult sponsor of the Christian Youth Fellowship and spearheaded its first Habitat for Humanity project. Bill liked to travel and his last trip, in 2002, included a visit to the Isle of Skye, where his McCaskill ancestors had come from. He was a modest and unassuming man with a very sharp wit and a keen sense of humor. He was very much a family man and is survived by his wife, Elaine; three sons, Scott, Marc, and Walter; two granddaughters, Alayna and Gillian; a brother, Joe; and two sisters, Sheila and Ann. He is sorely missed by all.
