Edith Pearl Redmond Walker

Edith Pearl Redmond Walker, 92, died peacefully on Monday, Sept. 12, at Gordon Hospice House in Statesville, surrounded by her family. In recent years, she had slowed down from her lifetime of service to her community and church, but her illness and death were recent and unexpected. Born February 13, 1924, in Iredell Co., she was the daughter of Roy Lee and Beulah Viola Levan Redmond, and the stepdaughter of Frances Levan Redmond. On May 2, 1942, she married Jay Philip Walker, who preceded her in death. A graduate of Statesville High School, when it was located at the current Front Street location of Mitchell Community College, Edith was a voracious reader whose interests and knowledge ran wide and deep. She and her husband built their first home, a two-room log cabin, in West Statesville. In the early 50s, they bought a farm on Pisgah Church Road. Walker Valley Farm became the homestead for the rest of their lives. A working farm, they raised dairy and beef cows, as well as pigs and chickens, grew acres of vegetables, and picked blackberries in the woods. Preserving fruit, vegetables and meat, along with making sausage and livermush were just few of Edith’s labors. Family and friends often pitched in. The farm is the place where several generations gathered in the huge yard to rest from their labors, enjoy tables full of food or just visit. Edith knew the name of every tree and plant on the farm, and hosted the annual wildflower hike there for many years. Edith’s activities included the Central Homemakers’ Club, an affiliate of the Iredell County Agricultural Extension. She not only cooked, canned, sewed, crocheted and quilted, she taught others, especially children through 4-H. She also created a booklet of quilt patterns. When the agricultural extension offices became cramped in the late 1970s, Edith was among hundreds of county homemakers who mobilized to make a new facility a reality, at the corner of Water and Tradd Streets. Teaching came naturally to Edith. A member of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in North Iredell, she taught Sunday School and Vacation Bible School for many years, using the King James Bible as the foundation for her lessons. She was active in the church women’s society, and compiled and edited a Pleasant Grove cookbook, with historical notes about the church from community members. With the late Louise Santorum, Edith was instrumental in starting the church Training Union and the library. One of her favorite stories was about the building of the church and the fellowship hall. She said, “The men of the church did the building and the women fed them.” She was fond of saying, “In the country, the people had the skills to do what had to be done.” With her love for history, Edith spent years painstakingly researching and documenting Walker and Levan genealogy. She was an officer of the Iredell Genealogical Society and assistant editor of two editions of the Iredell County Heritage book. With other members, she helped write the grant to obtain funding for the restoration of the Old County Courthouse on North Center St., which became the home of the Iredell County Commissioners, with space for the genealogy office. Edith took being an American seriously, and rarely missed voting in elections – local, state and federal. When family and friends gathered and talk turned to politics, she spoke knowledgeably about the issues and often added historical tidbits to the conversations. She had one brother, Philip Lee Redmond, who preceded her in death. Surviving Edith are her son, Clay Walker (Janet); a daughter, Judy Walker Stewart; three grandchildren, Jay Stewart (Sherry); Kristin Walker Tomlin (Bradley); and Karen Walker Ireland; two great-granddaughters, Abigail Tomlin and Savannah Stewart, all of Iredell County. Also surviving are her brother-in-law, Garth Walker (Marie) of New York, and sisters-in-law, Thelma Walker of Stony Point, and Joanne Walker of Charlotte; and nieces and nephews. Special family friends are Gail Shoemaker, Martha Folsom and Elizabeth Garcia. The family will receive friends in the Pleasant Grove Baptist Church fellowship hall, 848 Pisgah Road, Stony Point, on Thursday, Sept. 15, at 1 p.m. The Rev. R. Sidney Lanier will conduct the Celebration of Life at 2 p.m., in the sanctuary, with burial in the church cemetery. Pallbearers are James Walker, James Ruppard, T. J. Patterson, Bryce Prevette, Jay Stewart, Bradley Tomlin, Wilson Godfrey and Kent Moore. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be given to the Pleasant Grove Cemetery Fund or Gordon Hospice House.

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Edith Pearl Redmond Walker

February 13, 1924 - September 12, 2016