Carrie Evelyn Hodge

Funeral services for Carrie Evelyn Hodge, 99, of Marshall will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009, at Ebenezer United Methodist Church, 906 Whetstone St., Marshall, with Pastor Maggie Young officiating. Burial will be in Wiley College Cemetery under the direction of Rambo Funeral Home. She passed Saturday, Jan. 17, 2009, at Good Shepherd Hospital, Longview. Carrie Evelyn FoppŽ Hodge was born Jan. 12, 1910, in Belcher, La., to the parentage of Richard Lane FoppŽ Sr. and Nina Graves FoppŽ. After the death of her parents, she moved to Shreveport, La. Her eldest living sibling and his wife, Sam and Belvia Epps FoppŽ, reared Carrie Evelyn and her younger sister, Nina Kay. Carrie graduated from Central Colored High School in Shreveport. After graduating from high school, she attended Tuskegee Institute, now Tuskegee University, in Tuskegee, Ala. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Wiley College, Marshall. At Wiley College, she became a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Carrie married the love of her life, Freeman Prince Hodge Sr. To this union, four children were born: Nina Lynne, Anne Lane, Freeman Prince Jr. and Richard FoppŽ. They united with Ebenezer United Methodist Church and remained faithful members until their deaths. She taught Sunday School and Vacation Bible School. She was also a member of Circle No. 2. Having taught in Shreveport and Ruston, La., in her early teaching career, she continued her many years of teaching in the Marshall Independent School District, she was a dedicated teacher. Park, J.H. Moore, Stephen S. Austin and George Washington Carver Elementary Schools were the love of her heart. Even after her retirement, her love of children, love of teaching and love of learning never ceased. She was a caring and wise woman. Always willing to help or to offer advice, she became a surrogate mother to many of her children's friends. They affectionately called her Mama Carrie. Her surrogate children, many of her former students, and friends always checked on her regularly. They often brought her favorites: Word search puzzle books, Blue Bell ice cream, Coca-Colas, and fountain pens. Mama Carrie was a life member of the Wiley College National Alumni Association and a member of the Marshall area Wiley Club. When the old refectory on the Wiley College campus was refurbished, the building was named Freeman P. & Carrie E. Hodge Hotel & Restaurant Management Center, in their honor. She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; five brothers, William "Billy" FoppŽ, Samuel Graves "Sam" FoppŽ, John "Santee" FoppŽ, Richard Lane FoppŽ Jr., and Rufus Ashton "The Colonel" FoppŽ; two sisters, Elizabeth "Maude" FoppŽ Pindle and Nina Kay FoppŽ Wilkerson. She is survived by her four children, Nina Lynnne Hodge Gilstrap (Raymond) of Rowlett, Anne Lane Hodge Cottman (Norman Jr.) of Henderson, Nev., Freeman Prince Hodge Jr. (Laverne) of Los Angeles, Calif., and Richard FoppŽ Hodge Sr. of Marshall; two granddaughters, Attorney Kim FoppŽ Mallory of Pinole, Calif., and Carrie Beatrice Hodge of Los Angeles, Calif.; three grandsons, Richard FoppŽ Hodge Jr. (Sylvia) of Lynwood, Ill., Patrick Bush of DeSoto and Raymond Tolbert Gilstrap of Mountain View, Calif.; one great-grandson, Richard FoppŽ ("Tre") Hodge III of Lynwood, Ill.; one great-granddaughter, Lynda Evorn Hodge of Lynwood, Ill.; one sister-in-law, Ruth FoppŽ of El Dorado, Ark.; several nieces, a nephew, other relatives and her many friends. She is also survived by her extended family, sister, Forrest Shelton Luther; two daughters, Gwendolyn Armstrong Huntington and Dr. Amanda Pleasant Winters; sons, Nolan H. Anderson Jr., Ronald Charles Anderson, Solomon Banks Jr., Roy Edwards, John Walker, S.R. Walker, Andrew Watson Jr. and Claude Watson. Family hour will be 7-8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 23, 2009, at Ebenezer United Methodist Church. Rambo Funeral Home