Minnie L. Humphrey (Seymour) 's Obituary
Minnie Humphrey, beloved mother and grandmother, peacefully departed this earthly life the evening of Thursday, September 15, 2016, at her home in rural Seymour, Missouri. Minnie lived to the wise age of ninety-one years, seven months and twenty-nine days.
The oldest of eight children, she was born Minnie Lee Wood, in Opelika, Alabama, to Ocie Lee and Minnie O. (Howard) Wood, on January 16, 1925. In 1943, Minnie was working at Pepperell Mill in Opelika, when a gentleman and co-worker by the name of William Lee ‘Junior’ Humphrey, on a bet, asked her on a date. They married later on December 23, 1943, and to this union a son and three daughters were born. Minnie and William shared forty-nine wonderful years together before his passing on August 24, 1992. In 1953, Junior was laid off at the mill and was offered a job in Denver, Colorado, doing construction with one of the brother-in-laws. Minnie Lee stayed behind three months until Junior could afford to bring her and the three girls to join him. Minnie packed as much as one trunk could hold of their possessions and boarded a train with the trunk and three children, ages five, three, and three months old, and Minnie’s thirteen year old baby brother. The story she tells is that Elaine would start laughing and couldn’t stop so much that she finally spanked her…that must have been some trip! The Humphreys made their home in Denver, where Junior worked for Gates Rubber Company and Minnie was a devoted homemaker, loving wife, mother, and later grandmother. When her children were young and in her spare time, she greatly enjoyed selling Avon and was very successful with it for many years. Minnie was an expert gardener with both flowers and vegetables and she always happily shared them with family, friends and neighbors. She liked to collect rocks and took pleasure in quilting when time permitted. When Junior retired from Gates, he and Minnie bought a motorhome and travelled across the country. They especially loved the Missouri Ozarks area and what it had to offer and eventually made Seymour their home. Some of her family members soon followed. Minnie was of the Baptist faith and attended church until her health prevented it. Even then, she was dedicated to her Lord and faithfully read her Bible daily. Minnie was a very sweet and loving person, and very humble. On her 90th birthday, she received a signed letter from a member of the House of Representatives and an article about it was put in the local newspaper; she was very proud of that. In addition to her parents and husband, Minnie was preceded in death by a daughter, Annette Garson, and her husband, Richard Garson; a grandson, Raymond Garson; and a granddaughter, Penny Garson, who was a twin sister to Kenny, who survives; a brother, Robert Wood; and a brother-in-law, Clarence (Tubby) Rudd. Minnie leaves behind three children, Mary Beth Arthur and her husband, David, of Woodstock, Georgia; Shirley Elaine Westerman and her husband, Robert, of Seymour; and Rick Humphrey and his wife, Joyce, of Denver, Colorado; six grandchildren; thirteen great-grandchildren, with another on the way; sister, Elvine Rudd, of Opelika, Alabama; brother, Julian and Frances Wood, of Lanett, Alabama; sister, Frances Keffer, of Opelika; brother, Jessie and Jerri Wood, of Opelika; brother, Clifford and Betty Wood, of Pearl, Mississippi; and sister, Mary Joyce and Jerry Stevison, of Anchorage, Alaska, and Van Cleave, Mississippi; sister-in-law, Gladys Wood, of Dadeville, Alabama; and many more dear extended family. Minnie Lee Humphrey was a devoted wife, loving mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and a caring sister and friend. Her life set an example for her family and created many, many wonderful memories that will be cherished.
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