Mary Cantrell

Mary Frances Lee Cantrell, 79, of Spartanburg, died Friday, June 9, 2017 at the Spartanburg Regional Hospice Home. She was born on June 2, 1938 in Union County, South Carolina. Mrs. Cantrell was daughter of the late Reverend Michael Boyd Lee and Mary Nita Berry Lee. She was married for 45 years to the late William Joseph Cantrell. She was predeceased by her beloved husband and parents as well as her brother, Michael Boyd Lee, Jr. Mrs. Cantrell was a 1956 graduate of Cross Anchor High School. She received her Associate of Arts degree from Spartanburg Junior College in 1958 and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lander College in 1960. She earned her Master's degree from Western Carolina University in 1965 and continued additional post graduate work at the University of South Carolina, Spartanburg and the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. Mrs. Cantrell was a retired public school educator from Spartanburg School District Seven. She served as a first grade teacher at Park Hills Elementary School for seventeen years. She continued her service to District Seven as Coordinator of Special Reading Programs until her retirement in 1993. Mary Frances cherished the years she served as an educator and maintained an interest in her former students and school colleagues and was delighted when she encountered them. During Mary Frances' formative years, the United Methodist Church was influential in her life. With her husband, Mary Frances attended First Baptist Church, Spartanburg where she served as a Sunday school teacher, choir mom, and youth volunteer. In recent years, Mrs. Cantrell was a member of Morningside Baptist Church where she was an active member of the New Covenant of Joy Sunday School Class, the Golden Tones Senior Choir, the Church Library Committee, and a teacher in the English as a Second Language Program. She was also a member of the Spartanburg Garden Club, the National and SC Education Associations, the Spartanburg Historical Society, and the Athenaeum Book Club. Warm and friendly to one and all, Mary Frances loved talking and sharing stories with her friends and family. Mrs. Cantrell was a gracious hostess and always enjoyed welcoming others to her home. Her interests included cooking, sewing, traveling, and reading. She also was a talented writer whose Christmas letters and correspondences with her loved ones are legendary. Mary Frances also made appearances at many local elementary schools volunteering in character as Mrs. Claus, Old Mother Hubbard, and The 100 Year Old Lady to share her love of reading and learning. Mary Frances' grandchildren, her pride and joy, lovingly called their grandmother, "Frannie." It thrilled both she and Bill to share in the lives of their "grands" and to be included in their family activities and vacations. Surviving are her twin daughters and their families, Christy Lee Cantrell Emerson and her husband, Forrest Kingsley Emerson III, and their children, Caroline Cantrell, William Kingsley, and John Forrest Emerson of Moore, South Carolina; and Amy Elizabeth Cantrell and her children Myla and Eleecia Cantrell of Asheville, North Carolina; two sisters, Sidney Lee Williams, of Gray Court, SC and Harriett Lee Rucker, of Newberry, SC; and chosen sister, Shirley Baker Mills, of Spartanburg, SC; three brothers, Lewis Lee, of Newberry, SC, Mason Lee, of Spartanburg, SC, and Frank Lee, of Charleston, SC, and many treasured cousins and dear friends. Visitation will be 2:00 - 4:00 PM Wednesday, June 14, 2017 at Morningside Baptist Church in the Sanctuary. Funeral service will be held 3:00 PM Thursday, June 15, 2017 in the Sanctuary at Morningside Baptist Church. Burial will follow at Greenlawn Memorial Gardens. The family wishes to express their gratitude to the staff and caregivers at Eden Terrace Retirement Community for their dedication to and loving care of Mary Frances during the past two years. Memorials may be given to Morningside Baptist Church, 897 South Pine Street, Spartanburg, SC, 29302; the Michael Boyd and Nita Berry Lee Scholarship at Spartanburg Methodist College, 1000 Powell Mill Road, Spartanburg, SC, 29301; or to the charity of one's choice. The family is at the home of her daughter and son-in-love, Christy and Kingsley Emerson, 186 Morninglake Drive, Moore, SC. Floyd's North Church Street Chapel To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Mary Frances Cantrell please visit our Sympathy Store.