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Margaret Helen Brabham

August 6, 1929 ~ August 17, 2017

Margaret Helen Cheatham Brabham (88), passed away on Saturday, August 19, 2017, at Nash General Hospital in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. She was born on August 6, 1929, in Ducktown (Polk County), Tennessee to the late Reverend Nathan Floyd Cheatham and Frances Lucille Amburn Cheatham. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Gerald Waldo Brabham of Rocky Mount, and her infant daughter, Maggie Amburn Brabham. She is survived by her brother and sister-in-law the Reverend James Amburn Cheatham and Ann Huffman Cheatham of Mineral Bluff, Georgia; and her sister and brother-in-law Dorothy Frances Cheatham Cornell and the Reverend Charles George Cornell of Clermont, Florida. She leaves behind to cherish her memory her daughter and son-in-law Sherry Frances Brabham and James Anthony OBrien of Glen Ridge, New Jersey and their children Rory James McIntyre OBrien and his wife Ann Marie Kelly OBrien of Letterkenny, Ireland, John Louis Brabham OBrien and Elizabeth Gerald Brabham OBrien of Glen Ridge, New Jersey; her sons, Gerald Martin (Gerry) Brabham of Rocky Mount, North Carolina and Anthony Floyd (Tony) Brabham of Charlotte, North Carolina and his children, Nathan Anthony Brabham and his wife Mindy Aften Brabham of Castalia, North Carolina and Krista Micheal Brabham of Rocky Mount, North Carolina. She also leaves her beloved great-grandchildren Kristian Amari Moore, Keidrin Jamal (KJ) Moore, Jr., Charlie James OBrien, and Evie May OBrien. Helen was a wonderful woman - loved by her family and her many friends. She was spirited and charming, with a gracious demeanor, welcoming smile, and infectious laugh. It was her energy and intelligence - not to mention her classic beauty that caught the eye of the love of her life, Gerald, to whom she was married for 34 years before his death and who she deeply loved for the rest of her days. As a young woman, she was active in her community and at her church, serving as Worthy Matron of the Eastern Star and teaching all ages of Sunday School classes in Baptist churches in Clayton, Georgia, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Rocky Mount, North Carolina. She was an excellent cook and a skilled baker. Each summer, she preserved, canned, and froze pints and pints of fresh fruits and vegetables from Geralds gardens to provide tasty supplements to family meals through the coming year. In addition, she was an excellent seamstress, making perfectly tailored clothes for her daughter, her friends, and, on occasion, herself. She was also a skilled pattern-maker, translating her ideas for a certain flare or embellishment into newspaper before sewing the unique garment that she had created. Her compassion for others, coupled with her excellent memory and quick intelligence, allowed her to become expert in American Sign Language. She taught this language to her children and to many others, tutoring individuals and teaching classes through Nash Community College. Most importantly, she was supportive and welcoming to many deaf and hearing-impaired friends, both young and old. As her children grew, she went to work outside the home, holding several positions at area banks and offices and becoming payroll director at a local textile mill. In her sixties, she acquired her first computer - and became an immediate expert. She researched her familys genealogy, documenting several limbs and branches of a family tree dating back to the 1600s. Her work with her (and other) families histories connected and re-connected her to relatives and friends near and far, making her central to communications among scattered members. If anyone had news - good or bad - they wrote to Helen and she let everyone know. Frequently, she would begin or conclude her email missives by reminding us to pray for one another as we are all “standing in the need of prayer.” Helen was fiercely loyal to her family and those she held dear. She admired and respected her parents, grandparents, and aunts and uncles for the courage they showed in facing hardships, the ingenuity they demonstrated in meeting lifes challenges, and the love and joy they showered on each other throughout it all. Helen preserved their stories by telling and retelling them and she documented their lives with thousands of photographs, lovingly restored, digitized, and chronicled with names and dates. She deeply treasured her memories of her childhood and early family life in east Tennessee and north Georgia and always called that part of the country her home. When Gerald died twenty-five years ago, Helen bravely countered her loss by investing even more time and energy in her family and volunteer activities. She welcomed her young grandchildren into her home, giving them a true extended family. She took them swimming and strawberry picking. They played on the tall swing she had designed and Gerald and his boys had built in her back yard. They ate Grandma Helens specialties - sausage gravy, chicken pastry, creamed corn, homemade ice cream. She allowed the cousins to forge the bonds that will ensure they are friends for life. She volunteered for Rocky Mounts Braswell Memorial Library. Her project was creating an index for 59 years of Atlantic Coast Line Magazines, noting every individual name mentioned, volume number and date, page number, and title of the article or heading of the photograph. She painstakingly made tens of thousands of entries to allow easier access to these historic materials for future users. For this work, she was named Volunteer of the Year in 2013 by the Atlantic Coast Line and Seaboard Air Line Railroad Historical Society, “with grateful appreciation from the members and directors of the ACL SAL HS.” The foundation of Helens generous and committed spirit was her deep faith that was as much a part of her nature as breathing. Hers was a faith that extended love to all Gods children and to all creatures great and small. She saw Gods handiwork in the beauty of creation - especially those Blue Ridge Mountains that were her home. She faithfully fed the birds throughout her life, and knew exactly when a particular species would come to her bird bath each afternoon. She loved dogs and welcomed quite a few - Preacher, Mickey, Trouble, Gidget, Lady, and her beloved Tramp into her heart and home over a lifetime. The last days of her life were for Helen a celebration of her great wealth of family, friends, and precious memories. Countless times, she asked, “Arent I so blessed - to have had such a good man for a husband? to have such wonderful children and grandchildren? to have my brother and sister and their families? to have been raised by kind, loving parents? to have a beautiful place to live? to have so many photographs and priceless memories? Her gratitude was so sincere and expansive that it was breath-taking to be in her presence. She kept near her a plaque that had been her mothers that said, “Aint nothing going to come up today that me and the Lord cant handle.” We know that was and is true for her at the time of her passing and in eternity. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Polk County Historical and Genealogical Society (PO Box 636, Benton, Tennessee 37307) or the Friends of the Braswell Memorial Library (PO Box 244, Rocky Mount, North Carolina 27802). Visitation will be held Tuesday, August 22, 2017, from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM with a memorial service to follow at 7:30 PM at Johnson Funeral Home, 661 English Road, Rocky Mount, NC. (www.johnsonfuneralsandcremations.com) Burial will be private. Visitation Johnson Funeral Home and Cremation Services 661 English Rd Rocky Mount, NC 27804 ID ) ); ?>"> --> (252) 937-8886 --> | Tuesday 8/22, 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm Service Location Not Available Tuesday 8/22, 7:30 pm

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  1. Gerry, Tony and families please accept my deepest condolences for the loss of your mother. Her obituary was so beautiful and showed the wonderful, talented and loving mother she was. I pray Gods grace will comfort your family as you navigate through your grief. Ill keep all of you in my thoughts and prayers.

  2. Tony, Gerry and family, Al and I are so very sorry for your loss. I remember your Mother as a kind and gentle, loving woman, and know your hearts are broken. Please know that you are in our thoughts and prayers. Teresa and Al Bullard

  3. We are so sorry for your loss! Helen was such a wonderful lady. I especially enjoyed learning sign language from her! She will be missed by many. Love to your family and prayers for this difficult time. May your memories bring a smile to your face in the days ahead. Love, Winnie and Phillip Johnson

  4. I just got through reading Helens obituary.I learned so much about this remarkable lady I will miss yours Helen.You were there for me when my mom and your friend came down with dementia When I couldnt talk to her I had you. Ms Helen Im know you are with the Father and your love ones. Heaven is lucky to have such a Angel. You were my Angel here.You are now a Angel in heaven. You are in my heart forever.

  5. I so enjoyed my visits with your Mom. It was such a pleasure to spend time with her. Her indexing skills will be missed..sending love.. and hugs to all of you..Judy Henry Brown

  6. So very saddened by your loss, she was such a good genealogy buddy and friend – what will I (and PCHGS) ever do without her advice and help. She knew something about everyone in Ducktown! Praying for Gods peace and comfort for the family. Marian

  7. Helen was a delight to me! She always emailed me and kept me informed of family matters. That was truly a blessing since I live out of state in Alabama. She was generous with family tree information which was invaluable to me. I loved her sense of humor and it always came through in her emails. I will be forever grateful to this sweet lady! Judy Cheatham Rapp Birmingham, AL


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