Obituaries

Martin Dale Hughes, 51, of Tempie Mountain Road, Spruce Pine, died Monday, May 9, 2016, at the St. Joseph’s campus of Mission hospitals in Asheville.

Born July 13, 1964 in Mitchell County, he was the son of Wilma Hughes Boone and the late Bobby Hughes. 

In addition to his father, his paternal grandparents, Lynn and Addie Hughes; and his maternal grandparents, Carl and Nettie Buchanan, preceded him in death.

Lace Stafford, 87, of Stafford Lane, Newland, the Plumtree community, died Saturday, May 7, 2016 at the Johnson City Medical Center. He was the son of the late Claude and Matilda McKinney Stafford. 

He was preceded in death by a granddaughter, Rhiannon; four sisters; and seven brothers.

These are the words that Lace wrote for his own obituary he wanted family and friends to know about him:

Sam John Norman, 80, of Morganton, died Sunday, May 1, 2016. Born in Burke County April 15, 1936, he was the son of the late Samuel Norman and Etta Smith Norman. 

Sam was a lifetime member of Salem United Methodist Church and was a veteran of the North Carolina National Guard.

He was an avid Tar Heel fan, photographer, nature lover, furniture builder, clockmaker and gardener.  

He worked at Knob Creek from its inception, then Ethan Allen and then retired from G&G of Morganton. 

Olive Louise Bowyer, 97, of  Gulf Breeze, Florida, passed away Monday, April 25, 2016, in The Beacon Assisted Living. She was the daughter of the late Charles and Mattie O’Berry Townsend and the wife of the late Henry Bowyer, who died in 1997. She and her husband were former residents of Bakersville.

She was a homemaker and a member of Bakersville Baptist Church, and also a former member of The Red Hat Club in Bakersville.

Gloria Young Gray Yuhn, age 72 of Bakersville passed away at Hospice, Solice Care Partners of Asheville on April 21, 2016. Graduate of Marion schools. She attended Bakersville Baptist Church.

Survivors include: her husband, Delbert (Del) Yuhn of 15 years. Son Mark Gray (Tammy) of Marion; sister, Brenda Dixon of Winston-Salem. 

Funeral services were April 24, 2016 in the chapel of Henline-Hughes Funeral Home with Richard Anderson of McDowell Hospice officiating.   

BAKERSVILLE — Robert William “Bobby” Huskins, 89, of the Lily Branch Community, passed away Tuesday, April 19, 2016. 

He was the son of the late Charles and Creanie Gouge Huskins. 

Bobby was a member of the Lily Branch Baptist Church, the National Rifle Association and the American Chestnut Association. He also retired from the engineering department of DuPont and was a veteran of the United States Army. He served in World War II as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne, and was also a demolition specialist.

BAKERSVILLE — LeElla Greene Cooke, 83 of Staggerweed Road, Bakersville, went home to be with the Lord April 22, 2016. 

She was a native of Mitchell County and a  daughter of the late Ralph and Modine Hughes Greene. She was retired from the Toe River Health District. She was a member of Calvary Baptist Church and former member of Roan Mountain Chapter 29 Order of The Eastern Star.