On Sunday July 17, Mrs. Mary Nell Parker Cantrell, departed this life. She was a devoted and faithful Christian, wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.
Mrs. Cantrell was born Mary Nell Parker on January 31, 1933, the daughter of Collins and Pearl Parker of Greenhill, AL. She grew up in a large and devoted family, and was married to Walter Sherman Cantrell of Hampshire, TN on September 5, 1959. Mr. Cantrell preceded her in death in 2002.
Visitation will be Wednesday evening from 6:00-9:00 p.m. at Elkins Funeral Home, Florence. The funeral service will be Thursday at 11:00 a.m. at the Pleasant Valley Church of Christ with Ellis Coats and Ken Delano officiating. The casket will lie in state one hour prior to the service. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
Mrs. Cantrell is survived by three children, Walter Alan Cantrell, of Nashville, TN, Mary Kimberly Hagood, of Richmond, VA, and Alicia Dianne Eaton, of Knoxville, TN. She had eleven grandchildren, Jonathan Alan Powell, Mary Margaret Leavitt, Matthew Ryan Powell, Andrew Dylan Powell, Anna Kimberly Cantrell, Katherine Elizabeth Powell Deer, Mary Allison Cantrell, Sarah Alan Cantrell, James North Hagood, Jordan Beck Hagood and Jackson Albert Cantrell. She had one great-grandchild, Eliza Rose Deer.
Mrs. Cantrell was retired from Reynolds Metals Company, where she had a long and successful career. She was a lifelong member of the Church of Christ, as was her husband. She was happiest when surrounded by the many of us who loved her dearly every day of her life.
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18