Ethel E. Wilson

Born in Duncan Town, Ragged Island, Bahamas on August 30, 1931
Departed on August 20, 2009. Resided in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Memorial

Ethel E. Wilson, 77, died Thursday, August 20, 2009 at the Dennis & Donna Oldorf Hospice House of Mercy in Hiawatha. A Celebration of Life service will be held at 11 AM Monday, August 31, 2009 at Cedar Memorial Park Chapel of Memories with Dr. Damian M. Epps officiating. Interment will be held in Lilly View Cemetery in the Bahamas. Friends may call from 2 to 5 PM on Sunday, August 30, 2009 at Cedar Memorial Park Funeral Home.

On a warm summer day, August 30, 1931, in the quaint settlement of Duncan Town, Ragged Island in the Bahamas, a beautiful baby girl was born the seventh child of George and Myra (Wilson) Lockhart. They named her Ethel Eliza. Her early education was at the Ragged Island all-age school. Ethel loved to fish from her family’s boat while living on the island. She also enjoyed cooking, cleaning, and raising vegetables in her garden. When she traveled to Nassau, she would spend her time with Uncle Brian and Aunt Jennie.

Ethel left the Bahamas at the age of 19. She moved to Miami, Florida, where she married Hansel Wilson on December 2, 1950. The young married couple moved to Shellsburg, Iowa, to the Naber-Showman farm, where Ethel enjoyed cooking and cleaning for the Showman family. That winter was the first time she had seen snow or felt cold, making her long for the warmth of the Bahamas. In October of 1951, Ethel gave birth to her first child, Theodore Reginald. Five more children followed. The family moved to Cedar Rapids the summer of 1960.

In Cedar Rapids, Ethel cooked and cleaned for others to help provide for her family’s needs as they were growing up. She was known for her immaculate house, great cooking, and her beautiful garden and yard. Ethel opened her home to strangers and friends, offering wonderful food and hospitality. Holiday meals were always a big event at her house, and her Sunday meals rivaled most people’s Thanksgiving Day feasts. Some came to visit once and others never left, but all remember her good food and hospitality even today. Ethel enjoyed watching her children and grandchildren as they participated in activities such as dance and various sporting events, but she was most proud when they received educational scholastic awards. She was always their number one cheerleader.

Mom and Grammy, as she was known to her children and grandkids, always tried to do the best for each one of them. Ethel will always be remembered for her unconditional love, her kind spirit, her generosity, and her concern for everyone else’s well-being. And her smile……A BEAUTIFUL SMILE.

She is survived by sons Theodore Wilson, Horace Wilson, Tristan (Tabitha) Munnings, Kennedy Lockhart, and Joel Nesbitt; daughters Diantha (Johnny) Powell, Frances (Fred) Northern, Elsie Wilson, Gertrude Fitzpatrick, Sharel Wilson and Troy Lewis; grandchildren Ashton, Brittney, Bethany, Blaire, Cody, Cybryan, Simeon, Calista, Daijah, and Patrick; sisters Helen Saunders, Enid Lockhart, Verlina Maycock, Genesta Lockhart, Veronica Pintard, Florinda (Granville) Hepburn, Shiela Curling and Katie Lockhart; and brothers Tony Lockhart and Perry Lockhart. And a host of nieces, nephews, and other family members.

The family of Ethel would like to express sincere appreciation for caring support from all friends of Cedar Rapids and Shellsburg, Iowa. Also to the entire community of Duncan Town, Ragged Island and to various families: Wilson, Lockhart, Wallace, Maycock, Hepburn, Pintard, Curling, Bridgewater, Munroe, Moxey, Armbristor, Nesbitt, and Panza.

She was preceded in death by her parents, sister Wilhelmina Nesbitt, and three brothers, Preston, Terry, and Hollis Lockhart.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in her name to Dennis and Donna Oldorf Hospice House of Mercy and cancer research are preferred.

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