Alicia Anne Berryhill Boswell

Alicia Anne Berryhill Boswell

On Monday evening, May 13th, Alicia "Anne" Berryhill Boswell left this earth for her eternal home after an extended illness.

Anne was born in Jackson, TN on September 1, 1925 to Thelma (Harwood) and Dr. Grailey H. Berryhill. In 1943, Anne graduated from Jackson High School and continued her education at Gulf Park College in Gulf Port, MS. She completed her B.S. at Lambuth College in Jackson, Tennessee.

She was a member of Kappa Chi sorority, represented TKO fraternity as royalty, and was chosen as a member of La Jaunese. She was selected as a Princess of the Cotton Carnival in Memphis.

As a college student, she faced several difficult operations in Chicago to improve her hereditary hearing loss. She knew the difficulty and frustration of hearing loss, and had great compassion for others that suffered with this deficit, too.

In 1953, she married a young lawyer, James H. Boswell. Together they were active in the Tennessee Bar Association, Vanderbilt Alumnae Association, and Vanderbilt Law School Alumnae. They enjoyed spending time with friends at their Couples' Bridge Club and going to horse races. She loved traveling and had just returned from her grandson's recent wedding in Highlands, NC. She adored living in Jackson; loved her parents and sister dearly. She considered her daughters' friends as her own. Our home was a place where friends hung out and felt comfortable.

Her hobbies included: sewing, gardening, floral arranging, entertaining, antiquing, painting, wallpapering, decorating, cooking and volunteering. She had been active in the following: Jackson Service League, Jackson Planning Commission Member, First United Methodist member, The Republican Party, TN Arts Commission, Bal Masque, member of the Jackson Country Club, and the Marianna Milk Fund. She was private in her faith, but tried to live her life as an example of Christ.

Our mom was preceded in death by her husband, James, on December 31, 2012.

She leaves two daughters, Alicia B. Franco of Jackson and Molly B. Allen (Andrew) of Erie, PA; four grandsons, Stephen (Meredith) Franco of Winter Park, FL, James Franco of Boston, MA, Matthew Franco of Miami, FL and Christopher (Rebecca) Cochran of Atlanta, GA; sister, Grailyn Brooks and her children, and their families, Berry (Connie) Brooks, Tricia (Clift) Odom and Susan (Fred) Martin.

We extend thanks and gratitude to the outstanding doctors, nurses, and support personnel that gave great care to our dear mother at JMCG Hospital and St. Francis Hospital in Memphis over the past months and for Ruthie, Brenda, Camilla, and Carolyn, who took such good care of mom when she was at home! God's presence was there with mom and in them.

We ask that memorials be made to: The West TN School for the Deaf, The West TN Hearing and Speech Center; RIFA; The Wounded Warrior Project; or First United Methodist Church.

Visitation will be on Friday, May 17th from 5 - 7 p.m., and Saturday, May 18th from 10 -11 a.m., followed by the funeral service at 11 a.m., at First United Methodist Church in downtown Jackson.

Lawrence-Sorensen Funeral Home, (731) 424-2424.