Virginia Mae Stewart's Obituary
Virginia Mae Dowell Stewart was born June 27, 1930 in a little 3 room house up on a hill, 2 and a half miles southwest of Fayetteville, Arkansas. Dr. Fred Morrow was responsible for bringing her into this world. Along with him was her aunt Hazel Mae Cate.
Her father and mother were Clint Cato and Cora Mae Dowell. She had two half brothers, Cassie Rauch and Claude Dowell, and one half sister Ida Rauch, and one full brother Robert Lee Dowell, the best brother a girl could have.
At the age of six she started to school at Midland School, which was about a 1 and a half mile walk. The school was a three room school. It went from first grade to sixth grade. Robert finished the sixth grade as Mae finished the first. The next school year Dad transferred them to Greenland school because it was too far to walk to Fayetteville. Greenland had a bus that came close to her house. She went to Greenland 10 and a half years, graduating in December 1947.
In September 1948, she started to work at Woolworth on the toy counter, then was moved to the hardware counter, which was hard for her at first. She coon learned what things were, like electrical plugs and outlets. She learned a lot on that counter. She did not have electricity at her house at that time, so she knew nothing about electrical things. But she learned.
She moved to a new store and was made floor supervisor. When the mall was built, she was out there. This time she was put in the office after 32 years with the company. She retired in 1980. After she worked there for a while, she decided to go to business college and take a typing course. They did not teach typing at Greenland at that time. She went to school in the morning and worked in the afternoon. After she finished, her boss talked her into coming back to work full time.
Growing up, her parents didn’t o to church, but she always wanted to go to Sunday School and went when she could., On Sunday, April 17, 1949, she was invited to the Nazarene church. Then it was Morrison Davis Church of the Nazarene. Now it is First Church of the Nazarene of Fayetteville. She was still going there at the time of this writing, when she could.
Since going to Fayetteville, she taught Beginners Sunday Schol for 2 years, NWMS president for 5 years, board secretary for 1 year, Sunday School Treasurer, NW
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