Mary Elizabeth Towe

Mrs. Towe was born in Indiana and was a daughter of the late Paul Ellis and Hannah L. Roberts White. She and her late sister, Madeline White Pennell, came to live in Asheville, their parents’ hometown, in 1918. In addition to her sister, Madeline, she was preceded in death by two young brothers, Albert and Kenneth and a young sister, Mildred.

A person of deep faith and joy, she was a longtime member of First Baptist Church where she served as Sunday school class officer at various times during the years. She was also a past member and former secretary of the Hylites Chapter of American Business Women’s Association. A retired cake decorator, she was featured in a national professional magazine recognizing her work in the early 1970’s. During this period she gave demonstrations for various organizations in the city.

Mary will be remembered for her loving kindness, her inner strength, her delight in the simple pleasures of life, and her prayers and encouragement for and of others.

Surviving are her daughter, Susan T. Hagood of Danville, VA; one grandson, Lt. Christopher Hagood, USN, of Kalaheo, Hawaii; one granddaughter, Lisa Ann Hagood of Valley Village, CA; one niece Mary George Pennell Brewer of Cary, NC; one nephew, Dr. Timothy C. Pennell of Winston-Salem; beloved great-nieces and nephews and many close cousins.

Funeral services will be 2:00 pm Sunday, March 19, in the Patton Avenue chapel of Groce Funeral Home with the Rev. Dr. Luther Brewer and the Rev. Gail Coulter officiating. Burial will be in Green Hills Cemetery.

Her family will receive friends at the funeral home 30 minutes prior to the service.