Marshall Paul Wacaster
Marshall was born on March 28, 1936 in McDowell County to the late Gaston Wacaster and Millie Thomas Wacaster. He passed away on October 7, 2007 at the age of 71.
In addition to his parents, he was also preceded in death by one brother, Grady Wacaster. Surviving are his wife, Juanita Stevens Wacaster of the home; two sons, Mark Wacaster (Linda) and Mike Wacaster (Samantha); one daughter, Penny Wacaster; four sisters, Bonnie Hamm (Bob), Brenda Blair (Troy), Joyce Roland, and Christine Pittman (Jack); four grandchildren, Jessica Wacaster Gilliland (Jeremy), Samantha, Joshua and Tori Wacaster; two step-grandchildren, Coty and Cassi Shuffler; one great grandson, Jeremiah Wacaster; and several nieces and nephews.
Marshall was a veteran of the U.S. Army and retired from Broyhill Furniture after over 35 years of service.
Marshall was known by family, friends and acquaintances for his honesty, hard-working attitude and general love of life. He was able to converse with others on a variety of subjects and see humor in any situation. Enjoying a talk and laugh on the front porch was one of his favorite pastimes.
In addition, Marshall was known for his deep love of the outdoors. Hunting, fishing, and overall love of God’s creation also defined who he was. When possible, most of his time was spent out of doors enjoying all that God created. This love of creation reintroduced and deepened Marshall’s love for his Creator.
Leonard Walker
It brought so much joy to my family being able to help others. My father, Leonard Walker, was a donor to The North Carolina Eye Bank. Daddy was born February 13, 1943. He departed December 20, 2007. Leonard had two daughters and two sons. He had six grandchildren and one great grandchild who kept him busy. Leonard enjoyed watching old country western movies. He also got a kick out of watching TV Land featuring Sanford and Son, The Jeffersons, and Good Times. Leonard enjoyed making the people around him laugh. But there were also the quiet times when he would sit back and watch us all with a sight smile on his face, shaking his head. Leonard was loved by friends near and far. Everyone always looked forward to him putting a smile on their faces. There was never a dull moment in the presence of Leonard. We will miss him greatly.
Linda Craver Wallace
November 20, 1946 – May 4, 2007
Mom was one in a million. Her zest for life was so contagious. She made everyone feel important and loved. Mom worked for the Winston-Salem Forsyth County school system for 22 years and had been at R.J. Reynolds High School for the last 15 years. She was the attendance clerk, meeting every student who signed in and out of school. At her funeral, there were nearly 800 people in attendance. It was a real tribute to her that students, parents, colleagues, family, and friends came to bid her farewell. Mom received the 2007 yearbook dedication at R.J. Reynolds High School. She never knew about the dedication, as it was voted on by the Senior Class of 2007 in the fall of 2006. It is kept a secret until the yearbooks are distributed.
Mimi, as she was called by her grandchildren Elizabeth and Putter, leaves a legacy of kindness and laughter. She is missed and loved by all of us. She always said that she wanted her eyes to be shared with others because they, too, could see something special within every person. Our lives will always be better because she was a part of the journey.
We love you,
Shannon and Chris Meinberg (Daughter and Husband), Elizabeth and Putter Meinberg (Grandchildren), Mike Wallace (Husband of 40 years), Chad Wallace (Son)
Debra Lynette Ward
My momma, Debra, was a very beautiful, remarkable, outstanding, caring, loving and giving woman. She even gave her all after her life ended. She was a mom to many and any who came her way, but mostly to five of her own – Christopher, Catherine, Tesa, Brandy, and Kenneth. My momma was not only a mom but a “MawMaw” to three beautiful grandchildren who made her life complete. Her babies were Jose, E’Lexius, and Carlos. She lived everyday of her life caring for everyone else. My momma found good in everyone. She loved life and she gave life through many donations and charities. The little things most of us leave unnoticed is what my momma loved the most. She was our beautiful girl. My momma was the most important person in our lives. She will always be with us and never forgotten. We all miss her and love her very much
Tesa, Brandy, Kenny, Jose, E’Lexius and Carlos
Jeff Watson
This is to let you know a little about Jeff Watson. He was a very loving and kind person. He loved his family with all his heart. He was an avid fisherman. He had his own lawn maintenance business. He used to play professional softball and loved every minute he played. He was married for 15 years to Ginger and had two children, Katie, 13 years old, and Alex, 8 years old.
He was a hard worker and loved with all his might. He was the kind of person who would do anything for anyone. He is greatly missed and the world is not the same without him.
Dorothy Mae “Dot” Witherspoon Webb
July 28, 1931 – July 18, 2007
Dot Webb was a character, or at least that’s what the minister who conducted the memorial service for her said; and it must have been true because it prompted a loud “Amen” from my sister sitting next to me in the church. A twitter of laughter could be heard from the nearly full church that Sunday afternoon. Those there who knew her must have been in agreement.
Our memories of Mother are varied. She loved her flower garden, and grew irises and lilies of all varieties. Until her health began to fail, she always had a garden each summer and canned or froze food which fed our family through the fall and winter. Mom loved to go fishing and would sometimes take off to a neighbor’s farm pond to catch a mess of fish. Any time she visited her sister in Florida she spent a good portion of that visit at the pond on their property. And her little dog BoBo gave her life purpose in her later years.
Mom was a seamstress and worked in several clothing factories as we were growing up. In addition she made nearly all the clothing for her four children and for at least one grandchild. A treasured possession of mine is a quilt that she made for me a number of years ago with scraps of fabric left from our childhood garments.
Every year between Christmas and Thanksgiving she would get out the butter, sugar and oil of peppermint and get all of us involved in the process of making mints which she would sell or give as gifts. How she handled that boiling mass of liquid she’d pour onto a marble slab in our kitchen, I’ll never know. Once it had cooled a bit, she’d hand off an end of it to me to help pull until it was just the right consistency to cut with the scissors into bite-size pieces. All of us kids, and sometimes Dad, would be put to work. She’d take the money she earned and go to town with my paternal grandfather since she didn’t drive in those days.
Mom loved a bargain and wouldn’t hesitate to work to get it! I can remember being mortified going to town with her as a teenager where she’d dicker and bargain with a merchant for the items she wanted. At the grocery store she’d have the cashier ring up the groceries periodically to see what the sub-total was and decide if some of the items had to be sent back to the shelves.
Mom enjoyed people, too. She spent several years as a 4-H leader at our church and took so much pride in her 4-H’ers who achieved many successes. In her later years she worked weekends at a local flea market managing a discount curtain booth where she would wheel and deal. If she didn’t have exactly what her customer was looking for, she’d sell what she had and she’d offer to make the alterations needed to make the sale, bring the curtains home with her and take them back the next weekend ready to hang.
As much joy as she had in her life, Mom also had a life filled with difficulties. Her father left her mother when she was a young girl and she and her siblings never really knew him. Mother experienced the tragedy of losing two of her children - one a daughter at the age of eight and then later an adult son in a diving accident. Numerous health problems and those events clouded her life. Our family is grateful that we were able to allow a portion of her to live on with the gift of sight to someone who will be able to see the beauty of this world that she loved so much.
Terry Webb, Jr.
Our memories are full of the times that we shared – the fishing, the swimming and just being there. You made our lives full of memories we hold so near to our hearts and will never let go. You taught us to love and to never fear. We feel your spirit still strong and so near. At times we feel lost without you here, but we look up to heaven and call out your name and God answers our prayers and we can go on.
We’ll always remember that one day we will be in heaven together and just memories.
Loving and missing you,
Your Family
Stephen Welch
Steve Welch was a very special man. He always put other people first. He was kind, gentle and loving. He had two daughters, six grandchildren and lots of nieces and nephews. He was a member of the Newport Moose Lodge. All the children there called him Uncle Steve. He was Uncle Steve to many children, but his generosity didn’t stop with the children. When anyone said “I need”, he was the first one there to lend a helping hand. He was a hard worker on the job or off. He made friends everywhere he went. He retired from the Marine Corps and worked for a private contractor repairing military planes. He took great pride in being a Marine and maintained his military status. He was proud to be an American. He was always giving, sometimes to the point he did without. And after death, being a donor, he is still giving. He is sadly missed by friends but mostly by family.
Sandra Whaley
It is with great honor I write these loving words in memory of my precious mother, Sandra Whaley. My mom was the light of my life. She was not only my mother, she was my best friend. My mom was very special in many ways. First and foremost, she was a loving mother. She taught me many valuable lessons in life – lessons that I will always treasure. She was a loving grandmother of five beautiful grandchildren. She was one of the best cooks in the world. I believe she could have made a meal out of anything. God had truly blessed her with this gift. My mom had a way of always making you feel welcome in her home. I miss my mom so much that my heart truly aches every time I open my eyes. My mom was a comforting spirit. She always had the right words for just the right moments. I remember the day when we found out she had brain cancer; I remember it so vividly. I was falling to pieces; it was as if the floor had fallen from beneath me. My mom so calmly took my hand and said, “It is OK. We will be fine.” I was so confused and angry. I did not understand how God could punish someone so special with such a devastating sickness. I did not want to lose my mom. As the days passed so quickly, we thanked God every day for the chance to have one more day with her and took each day as it came. We tried to make the best of the hand we had been dealt. My mom had always wanted to be an organ donor. She had always told us of her wishes. When they discovered the cancer one of the first questions we had for the Oncologists was whether or not she was still able to be an organ donor. Well, unfortunately, once you are diagnosed with cancer you are no longer a candidate for organ donation. I know my mom would have been pleased to learn that her precious gift of sight has helped someone else to see the beauty that is all around us. My mom will always be missed, and she will live forever in our hearts.
Mama, I will always love and miss you more than you will ever know.
Love,
Your daughter, Lee Ann Gonzalez
Shaton L. Williams
My son Shaton L. Williams was a fine young man. He was a helper to his pastor, Bishop LeRoy J. Woolard from Greenville. He was one of his armorbearers. He was a loving son, one who I could always depend on. He was a caring person, always willing to lend a helping hand to anyone who needed it. He was loved by many. He has left me with a wonderful granddaughter Aniya Williams. She is eight years old. He loved God with all of his heart. He loved his family, especially his mom Barbara Everett. When he was young he played football and basketball. His hobbies were going fishing with his friends. He was always a happy person and tried all he could to make everyone around him happy too. His nickname was Scooty. I just wanted to say that I’m glad he was able to give someone else hope.
We the family of Shaton Williams would like to say that we miss him very much, but his memories live on. May God also bless each of you.
Barbara and Kenny Everett
Shaton’s parents
Bobby Willis
Bobby loved his family. He enjoyed taking long vacations with his wife. He loved being with his wife and enjoying each other and life. He loved Christmas surrounded by his wife and children. On Christmas Eve he would hold his gifts and try to guess what is inside the box. Sometimes his guess was correct and sometimes not.
Bobby enjoyed family gatherings with his sisters and brothers. He loved telling jokes and tales until his sisters screamed with laughter. He loved his pastor and church family. He loved going to church. He took care of elderly people by being their caregiver and companion. Bobby was a committed family man.
Donald Willis
Donald had a nickname, Bucky, by which he was known more so than by his legal name.
We married in March 1979, but never had any children. We always had a house dog, and he was a great “Dad” to our four legged child.
Donald had beautiful blue/green eyes, and it is a great comfort to know that he is helping someone else to see and to enjoy the beauty God created.
Donald was a Christian and loved his church family. He was an avid NASCAR fan, golfer, bowler and truly loved his John Deere.
Connie Willis
Thomas Franklin Wilmoth
Thomas Franklin Wilmoth, 72, of Greensboro, went to be with his Lord and Savior on Thursday, September 13, 2007 after a lengthy illness. Thomas was born October 8, 1934 in Greensboro, the son of John James and Claudia Bain Wilmoth who passed away when he was still a young man.
Thomas, or “Red”, as he was known, was a member of the Guilford Masonic Lodge #656 since 1956. He was employed by Burlington Industries and later retired from Newman Machine Company after 25 years as the Manager of the Quiet Cut Department. He attended UNC-G and GTCC, and had many interests and hobbies including being a amateur radio operator, computers, flying and owning his own TV repair business. He was a master handyman, loved working on fixer uppers around the house, and was always there to repair anything that was broken – air conditioning, appliances, furnace, cars and anything electronic or mechanical.
Surviving are his loving wife Margaret, celebrating with Thomas 51 years of marriage; daughters, Gloria Goodman, Karen Mitchell, and son, Michael Wilmoth; three grandchildren, Amber, Nathan, and Lauren.
One of the many things that stand out about Thomas was his caring nature and generosity. During his retirement he played a much needed role in looking after and caring for his elderly father and mother-in-law, doing above and beyond whatever needed to be done, loving them as if they were his own parents. Thomas was a loving husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend to many. He would do anything for anyone. During his last year his daughter Karen was diagnosed with a rare eye disease and will be in need of a corneal transplant. While he was alive it was his wish to help her in anyway he could. After his passing the decision was made to make a donation to the Eye Bank in his honor. We know that he would be proud to know that he was able to play a small part in his daughter’s life or someone else being blessed by recovering their sight.
We will miss him every day until the time comes for us to be with him again. We love you, Daddy.
Krista Wolfe
God blessed us with our beautiful and sweet daughter, Krista, for 11 years. Krista taught us so much in the short amount of time we had with her, including kindness, compassion, patience, hope, and love, to name a few. Although Krista faced so many difficulties battling medullo-blastoma (brain cancer), beginning when she was just seven years old, she fought this disease with much grace, faith, strength, and courage. She maintained an optimistic outlook that most of us only wish for.
Krista loved being with her family, friends, and her pets (two cats and a dog). She really loved animals of all kinds and dreamed of someday being a pet shop owner. Krista loved being in the Girl Scouts and going to Piney Grove Elementary School. She had a passion for arts and crafts, and created some beautiful art work. She loved to swim and play board games too, as well as attend Camp Carefree and Victory Junction Gang Camp, where she was able to spend a week at each camp during the past four summers. Finally, Krista also enjoyed writing and she kept various journals. In her last journal entry, written just two weeks before she died, she wrote a page titled, “My Life Story”. In it she wrote about all of her family members and their importance. She also names many of her special friends and her pets. Finally, the last line of this story is something that touched us all. She wrote “I love everything in my life”. This statement is amazing to us considering all she went through during her long fight against cancer. It told us just how much she loved all the people in her life and that nothing could take away her happiness, not even cancer.
We are so thankful that Krista was able to continue to give following her death through the gift of sight to two individuals. We know that our angel, Krista, is so proud and happy that she could give this gift. We pray that the recipients love every moment of their new lives.
Krista was an extraordinary special gift from God. She touched the lives of everyone who knew her and is greatly missed by all of us.
Diane Wright
Diane Wright, 53, is a wonderful mother, daughter, and friend. Her life was taken suddenly on November 10, 2007 due to a heart attack. She could always make you smile when you had had a bad day and she also could light up a room just by walking in.
She was married for 28 years, as of June, 2007, to a loving and caring man. She would have been a grandmother in May, 2008 (daughter in photo). Diane saw her only child getting married in May, 2007.
While her daughter was in school, she volunteered with PTA and other organizations. Working at a local salon, everyone loved her. Ms. Diane is what they called her.
Her favorite basketball team is the Carolina Tar Heels! She would always cheer them on as if she were in the stadium herself.
We will always love, honor, and remember her as if she were still here with us. She will be truly missed.
Love,
Her family and friends
Michael Wright
Mike Wright was a friend for life who was always there to lend a helping hand with a smile on his face. He always was the one to see the sun shine and had an encouraging word for everyone around him. His genuine caring, positive attitude, and his love for life was amazing. He made things that were impossible seem easy. Your friends here at Siemens, the RBC Center and at HRW Realty will miss you! May your love and appreciation for all things in life be an example to all of us!
Ella Wyatt
April 1, 1932 – June 12, 2007
Ella Wyatt was a mother of four daughters, 10 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren.
Mom was our rock. After her husband died she lived with her daughter Debby in Florida. Her hobby there was bowling. She loved the warm weather and sitting on the porch drinking coffee. Another hobby of hers was - and people laugh at this – laundry. She never liked to see any of our laundry piled up. If she was visiting us, she would do our laundry. Mom was a very organized person. She made sure everything had a place. Now that she is gone we all wish we knew where that place is. We can’t find anything!
She loved the holidays and all the family being together. She loved waiting on her kids, getting them coffee or food. Mom loved being with her grandchildren. All twenty-seven of her grandchildren/great-grandchildren called her “Nanny”, and all of them would have stories to tell of her, but I only have one page.
Mom had very good eyesight. All of her girls wore glasses; Mom didn’t. She would read things for us when we misplaced our glasses.
We were all devastated when we lost her, but we are all happy that someone now has the gift of sight because of our Mom’s donation.
Lucy Wyatt
