Ailine Eloise Mewborn

FARMVILLE-Ailine Eloise Mewborn, 92, of Farmville passed away on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2015 after a period of declining health.

Following a private interment at Forest Hills Cemetery in Farmville, a memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday at Friendship Original Free Will Baptist Church near Farmville, the Rev. Jack Weathersby presiding. The family will receive friends following the service at the church.

Miss Mewborn was born Nov. 2, 1922 at Nehucky Farm, Snow Hill Township in Greene County, the ninth child of George Lemuel Mewborn and Eula Virginia Mewborn. She was preceded in death by her parents and siblings, Dr. John Moses Mewborn and wife Margaret MacNeill Mewborn; Ima Eula Mewborn; Beulah Barbara Mewborn; Nina Lee Mewborn Garner and husband Varner Rayford Garner; George Lemuel Mewborn Jr. and wife Cornelia Mattocks Mewborn; Henry Drew Mewborn; Quentin Alexander Mewborn; Marvin Bruce Mewborn and wife Mabel Parker Mewborn; and Manora Mewborn Nunn and husband Malcolm Dee Nunn. She is survived by her devoted caregivers, nephew Dr. Quentin Alexander Mewborn Jr. and wife Ann Moore Mewborn, and niece Nell Dixon Garner, all of Greenville; sister-in-law Mary Ellen Mozingo Mewborn of Greenville; and many other cherished nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends. The family thanks the staff of Spring Arbor in Greenville and special caregivers Jane Wamsher and Pam Tripp for their kind and capable care of Miss Mewborn during her last years.

After graduation from Snow Hill High School in 1939, Miss Mewborn attended East Carolina Teachers College, today East Carolina University, and graduated in 1943. She enjoyed a long career as a home economics and science teacher with the North Carolina Public Schools, particularly at Middleburg High School and Vance County Senior High near Henderson. Her greatest impact on students was in challenging them to expand their horizons and excel in their studies through hard work and perseverance. Many of her students reported that she was the teacher who influenced them most, who inspired them to become the good citizens and community leaders that they are today. Miss Mewborn was also a talented needle artist, sharing examples of her beautiful crochet, tatting, and bobbin lace with her relatives and friends. She traveled widely with family and friends throughout the United States and Canada and to Western Europe. Her nieces and nephews remember fondly their many car trips with Aunt Ailine, particularly to Washington, D.C., the New York World's Fair, historic sites throughout the country and the mountains and coast of North Carolina. On her retirement from teaching, Miss Mewborn moved to Farmville and North Topsail Beach, sharing homes with her sister Ima Mewborn. The sisters enjoyed a lifetime interest in genealogy and local history. They traveled widely while researching family lines, relished a lively correspondence with genealogists throughout the nation and often welcomed friends to their Farmville home to share the fruits of their research. Miss Mewborn was an active member of a number of genealogical and historical societies, including Daughters of the American Revolution, Daughters of American Colonists, Colonial Dames of Seventeenth Century, Jamestown Society, Magna Carta Dames, Eastern North Carolina Genealogical Society, Old Dobbs Society and many others. Ailine and Ima Mewborn also were early benefactors of Heritage Place at the Learning Resources Center of Lenoir Community College, contributing time, print resources and funds to establish the premier genealogical collection in eastern North Carolina. In 1999, Ailine and Ima donated their collection of personal papers and research, "These Are My People," to Heritage Place.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Heritage Place, Learning Resources Center, Lenoir Community College, Kinston, NC 28501; Friendship Original Free Will Baptist Church, c/o Susan Tyson, 3090 Cupelo Road, Farmville, NC 27828; or to the charity of one's choice. Arrangements are by Farmville Funeral Home. Online condolences may be made at www.farmvillefh.com.

Margaret L. Hemby McCaskill

Mrs. Margaret Lou Hemby McCaskill, 85, died Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2014. A graveside service will be conducted at 11 a.m. Saturday in the mausoleum at Pinewood Memorial Park.

Mrs. McCaskill, a lifelong native of Pitt County, was a graduate of Atlantic Christian College (now Barton College) where she received her bechelor's degree. She taught for more than 30 years in the Pitt County School System, retiring from A.G. Cox Middle School. She was a member of Arthur Christian Church.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas E. "Sparky" McCaskill; parents, Earle and Hester Worthington Hemby; and a brother, Al Hemby. She is survived by her sister, Janie H. Kemp of Bell Arthur; nephew, Ron Kemp of Greenville; nieces, Melinda Darden of Lexington Park, Md., and Joan Newsome of Portsmouth, Va.; sister in-law, Maude Hemby of Portsmouth, Va.; and great nieces, Kelly Gustafson of San Clemente, Calif., and Julie Botero of Crownsville, Md.

The family will receive friends following the service at the mausoleum. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Arthur Christian Church, P.O. Box 579, Bell Arthur, NC 27811 or to a charity of one's choice. Online condolences at www.wilkersonfuneralhome.com.