Person Page - 7010

     Sallie Denise Thomas Sallie Denise (Thomas) Whitson, age 59, of Unicoi, passed away on Saturday, January 7, 2023, at Johnson City Medical Center. A native of Burnsville, NC, Sallie is a daughter of the late Bobby Claiborne and Martha Lylann (Carpenter) Thomas. She was a member of Limestone Cove Memorial Union Church and was a homemaker who loved doing crafts and singing with her family. Her grandbabies were her life. Sallie Denise (Thomas) Whitson leaves behind to cherish her memories: husband of 36 years, Scotty Whitson; children: Jenny Banks and husband Michael, and Bobby Whitson and wife Kristen; grandchildren: Tyler Banks, Canaan Whitson and Bella Whitson; and siblings: Minnie Powell, Joey Thomas, Johnny Thomas, Gerald Thomas and wife Sheila, and Daniel Thomas and wife Sharon. A graveside committal service will be held at Pleasant Valley Baptist Church Cemetery, 1471 Possum Trot Road, Burnsville, NC.² She was born on December 8, 1963 at Burnsville, Yancey Co., North Carolina.² As of circa 1987,her married name was Whitson.² She married Scotty Whitson circa 1987.^1,2,3 Sallie Denise Thomas died on January 7, 2023 at Johnson City, Washington Co., Tennessee, at age 59.²

     Shirley Jean Underwood Shirley Jean Underwood McBee - daughter, mother, wife, sister, friend, nurse - passed away peacefully Sunday, October 14, 2018 at 10:58 p.m. She was surrounded by her husband, children, grandchildren, sisters, brothers and many other family members. Over the course of her 68 years she was a friend to many who always opened her home to those in need. As a nurse, which was her second career (being a mother was her first), she worked for over 15 years at Heritage Hall where her tender and expert care was recognized by doctors and patients alike. During her life, as her five children moved through school, her home was constantly filled with the love and laughter of the friends of her children, many of whom still recall her warmth and welcoming. Born August 27, 1950 in Bristol, Virginia, Front Royal became her home in the 1970s, and eventually became the home of her mother and father, who also loved the close-knit community of a small town. Shirley was a lover of her flower gardens, of doing laundry, of music of all kinds, and she was always quick to find the funny side of even the most trying circumstance (a quality that she passed to her children.) Coming from a large family (as one of seven children), she often took in whole families and others who needed a place to stay, a warm meal, or a cup of coffee. Perhaps the most enduring quality of her life was her service to others and her openness to and acceptance of difference, a quality that she also passed to her children. She encouraged each of us to embrace others and to open our hearts, minds and homes to those in need. Her children have gone on to work in health care, social services, violence prevention, education, conflict reduction and other public service. Shirley is survived by her husband, Edward; her daughters, Tammy and Carey; her sons, Gary, Chris and Derek; her sons-in-law, David, Keith and Aaron; 11 grandchildren, Bethany, Brock, Dakota, Dylan, Dalton, Dale, Wyatt, Andrew, Hunter, Jacob, and Brittany; three great grandchildren, Alexis, Kinsley, and Ava; her sisters Marilyn, Andrea, and Brenda; her brother, Michael; her brothers-in-law, Ronnie, Denny and Sam; and her sister-in-law, Sheila. She also leaves behind life-long family friends, the Gochenours, the Baughers, the Millsá, and the Johnsons, among many more. In her death, we are all profoundly reminded of the importance of family, of enduring friendships and of the transformative power of a shared meal. Her graveside burial service will take place in Panorama Memorial Gardens, 4917 Strasburg Road, Front Royal. Pallbearers will be Dakota and Dalton Welch, Brock Sharpe, Andrew McBee, Jesse Buracker, Dale Hockman, Tommy Day, and Benjamin Frame.² She was buried at Panorama Memorial Gardens, 4917 Strasburg Road, Waterlick, Warren Co., Virginia.² She was born on August 27, 1950 at Bristol, Virginia.^2,3 As of August 2, 1965,her married name was Wood.¹ She married Gary Lynn Wood, son of Thomas Haynes Wood and Mary Jane Harris, on August 2, 1965 at Bristol, Virginia.¹ Shirley Jean Underwood and Gary Lynn Wood were divorced on December 18, 1981.¹ Shirley Jean Underwood died on October 14, 2018 at Virginia at age 68.²