Thelma Jean Sawyer

Thelma Jean Carver Sawyer, 72, of 12 Scooter Run, Swannanoa, died Saturday, June 29, 2013, at Memorial Campus, Mission Hospitals. Mrs. Sawyer was born in Bakersville and was a 1958 graduate of Bowman High School in Bakersville. She was preceded in death by her mother, Myrtle Carver Snyder and by her grandparents, who raised her, Nettie and John Carver. She was an active and beloved member of Christian Creek Baptist Church in Swannanoa where she taught Sunday School and Vacation Bible School for many years. She also was a member of Alpha Phi International Women's Fraternity. Mrs. Sawyer was the "first mom" and ardent supporter of the Buncombe County Junior Miss program (now the Distinguished Young Woman program). She retired in 2011 from T.J. Maxx, where she served as a retail associate for nearly 20 years. She was an avid fan of the Atlanta Braves baseball team. She is survived by her husband of more than 50 years, Tommy D. Sawyer; two daughters, Teresa Renee Sawyer of Swannanoa, and Lisa Marlene Sawyer, and her husband, Lt. Col. Jerry Dean Kerby, USAF (Ret.), of Tampa, FL; Jeannie's "boys", Joshua Ellic Gant, his wife, Christine and their sons, Ellic and Blake, and Duncan Leland Gant and his wife, Jennifer, of Marion; a cousin, JoLeen Jones and her husband, J.C., of Greeneville, TN; a sister, Elizabeth Bennett and her husband, Bill, of Westminster, MD; a brother, Cecil Andrew Snyder of Westminster, MD; brother-in-law and sister-in-law Jimmy Jones and Birma Lee Sawyer of Swannanoa; sisters-in-law, Sadie Sawyer Mitchell of Arden, Anna Ogle Harvey of Canton, and Imogene Sawyer Blackwell of Rutherfordton; a special friend, Jackie Carl Holcombe and many nieces and nephews whom she loved very much. Graveside services will be at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday at Sky View Memorial Park on Cardinal Ridge Drive (at 1600 Tunnel Road) in East Asheville with the Rev. Robby Leighton officiating. The family will receive friends immediately following at the fellowship hall of Christian Creek Baptist Church, 40 New Salem Road in Swannanoa. The family will also receive friends from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. Monday at Groce Funeral Home on Tunnel Road. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Christian Creek Baptist Church Building Fund, 40 New Salem Road, Swannanoa, NC 28778, or to the American Cancer Society, 120 Executive Park, Building One, Asheville, NC 28801, or to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, 4530 Park Road, Suite 240, Charlotte, NC 28209.