WINIFRED DAWSON
Mary Winifred Rouse Dawson, 94, of Snow Hill, North Carolina, passed away on Saturday, April 30, 2005, at her home.
She was born May 23, 1910, at the Rouse homeplace near Charity Crossroad in Duplin County, North Carolina, the tenth child of Rufus Heflin Rouse and Martha Elizabeth Fussell Rouse.
After graduation from Rose Hill High School, Mrs. Dawson attended East Carolina Teachers College, today East Carolina University, and graduated in 1930 with a degree in education. Following her college graduation, she taught seventh grade in the Greene County Schools in Snow Hill.
On December 26, 1933, she married Lemuel "Lam" Dawson III of Greene County and lived with him on the Dawson farm near Fools Bridge on the Contentnea Creek, Bullhead Township. After her marriage, Mrs. Dawson was a homemaker and partner with her husband in their successful farming enterprise. In 1951, the Dawsons moved to Snow Hill and lovingly restored the Edwards-Dawson house on North Greene Street, her home until her death.
The Dawsons were lifelong members of Calvary Memorial United Methodist Church, where Mrs. Dawson was president and active member of the United Methodist Women, the first woman elected to the Board of Trustees, and an active supporter of the church's music program.
After her husband's death in 1970, Mrs. Dawson established the Lemuel Dawson III and Winifred Rouse Dawson Endowment to support the music program and other worthy programs of the church.
Mrs. Dawson was an active member of a number of educational, cultural and historical societies, including the Greene Hill Book Club, the Greene County Arts and Historical Society, and the North Carolina Museum of History Associates, serving many years on the Greene County Committee.
She enjoyed gardening, the fine arts, and travel, and during her lifetime she traveled extensively in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.
Mrs. Dawson was preceded in death by her husband of 36 years, Lemuel Dawson III; and her brothers and sisters.
"Aunt Winnie" is survived by many cherished and devoted nephews, nieces, family members, neighbors, and friends and a special sister-in-law, Nancy Dawson Taylor Edwards.
A Service of Death and Resurrection will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 3, 2005, at Calvary Memorial U.M.C. in Snow Hill with Reverend Claire Clyburn presiding. A graveside service will follow at the Snow Hill Cemetery. The family will receive friends after the graveside service and other times at the home.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Lemuel and Winifred R. Dawson Endowment, Calvary Memorial U.M.C., P.O. Box 445, Snow Hill, N.C., 28580; or to the charity of one's choice.
Arrangements entrusted to Taylor-Tyson Funeral Service
(Written & Paid by the Family)
Published in Obituaries on May 2, 2005 2:00 PM