Mary Sylvia Snider Edwards

Mary Sylvia Snider Edwards peacefully went to heaven at the WNC Baptist Home on Sunday, August 30, 2020, after a period of declining health. She was preceded in death by her dear husband, William Barnett “Bill” Edwards, who died November 26, 1996; her mother, Myrtle Moss Snider, who died the day Sylvia was born, October 6, 1926; father, Clingman “Cling” Snider; stepmother, Lois Mullinax Snider; sister, Hazel Bradford; and brothers, Grover, Roy and James L. “J.L.” Snider.

Survivors include her only daughter, Nancy Cole and husband Glenn; brother, Harry Snider, Yuma, AZ; sisters, Diana Parnell, Panama City, FL; Polly Rice (Jim), Asheville, NC; and Judy Snider, Weaverville, NC; along with several nieces and nephews and their spouses and children.

Sylvia lived in Buncombe County all of her life. After 30 years of service at BASF (formerly American Enka Corporation), she retired in 1989. She stayed busy after retirement, working in and around her home, embroidering, and reading. She especially enjoyed being outdoors, tending her flowers and doing yard work. Sylvia was a long-time, active member of Zephyr Hills Free Will Baptist Church. She loved her church family, and they all loved their “Miss Sylvia”.

A memorial service will be held on Thursday, September 3, 2020, at 11:00 a.m. in the Patton Avenue chapel of Groce Funeral Home, led by the Rev. Daniel Cason and Rev. Danny Gasperson. Services at Groce Funeral Home chapels are limited to 50 and face masks are required. Burial will follow at Ashelawn Gardens of Memory.

Mrs. Edwards will lie in state one hour prior to the service, beginning at 10:00 a.m.

The family welcomes flowers but also knows that Sylvia would be delighted with contributions to her church’s Building Fund. Checks should be made payable to Zephyr Hills Free Will Baptist Church and mailed to the church at PO Box 6808, Asheville, NC 28816.

The family is so thankful for the kind care and treatment provided by staff at the WNC Baptist Home, where Sylvia had resided since January 2019. To each of you they say: “You made a difficult time so much easier for Mother and for us. May God bless you for it, and may you remember her fondly.”