Willie Hudgins

Willie Sue Hudgins HOBBSVILLE - Willie Sue Toms Hudgins, 93, of the 1600 block of NC Hwy. 37 South, died Nov. 18, 2008, in her home. Mrs. Hudgins was born in Rutherford County, North Carolina, and was the daughter of the late William Taylor and Nancy Caroline Smith Toms. A 1932 graduate of Cool Springs High School in Forest City, N.C., she then graduated from Asheville Teacher's College, now Warren Wilson College, and taught in the Gates County school system for 40 years. A faithful member of Zion United Methodist Church, she had served as a Sunday school teacher, was active in its United Methodist Women, the Adult Choir, and had been a counselor for the Senior United Methodist Youth Fellowship. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, James Wright Hudgins Jr.; sisters, Bessie Hoyle, Ruby Livingston, Genevieve Toms; brothers, Glenn, J.O. and Reid Toms; and four other siblings who died as infants. Surviving are a daughter, Suellyn H. Riddick; her husband, Dennis and their son Brannon of Hobbsville; a brother, Paul Smith Toms and wife Evelyn of Forest City; several nieces and nephews; and extended family members. A funeral will be held Friday at 2 p.m. in Zion United Methodist Church by the Rev. Tracy Clayton. Burial will follow in the family cemetery at the home with Miller Funeral Home, 304 Main St., Gatesville, handling arrangements. Friends may join the family at the residence. Floral tributes are welcomed or contributions in her memory may be made to the Dorothy Wallace Scholarship at Chowan University, One University Place, Murfreesboro, NC 27855 or to University Hospice, P.O. Box 272, Ahoskie, NC 27910 or to Zion United Methodist Church, in care of Jane Spivey, P.O. Box 143, Sunbury, NC 27979.