A Tribute to Grannie

Wednesday afternoon Daryl received a call from his dad letting him know that his Grandma, Murriel Allen, had passed away. Our boys knew her as Grannie. We will definitely miss her a lot. Between Daryl and I she was the last grandparent we had left, and the only great-grandparent that our boys really remember. 

Grannie was 87 years old. After beating breast cancer twice, many many years ago, she had struggled with pulmonary issues for most of the last ten years and spent the last couple of years on oxygen. Her overall health had really declined in the last six months. She'd been in and out of the hospital and rehab in that time. She had a feeding tube put in at the beginning of October and had recently been moved from the regular hospital to a rehab hospital. They were getting ready to talk about hospice care when she passed away. 

Grannie was a most definitely a lady. She always had her hair done and was very particular about her clothing and makeup. Her home looked like something out of a magazine, always so clean and decorated everywhere with glass and crystal. She had a remarkable green thumb. At her house in Wellswood she had a ton of beautiful plants and even after she moved into John Knox a Village, her sunroom was devoted to her plants and pictures of her family. She was the kind of person who loved to give gifts and put a great deal of time into finding the perfect present for everyone for their birthday and Christmas. She also loved to cook and we enjoyed it when she did, in particular her pork and yellow rice and black eyed peas. Christmas Eve dinner at her house was always an event. 

Grannie grew up in the mountains of North Carolina with three younger brothers and moved to Florida in her 20s. She worked for several years as a clerk at the City of Tampa water department, before raising a family of three boys (Wayne, David, Kelly) with her husband Richard. Later she earned her teaching degree and taught special ed at Mendenhall Elementary. Richard died in 1987. Grannie spent the most of the next twenty years volunteering at the Tampa Performing Arts Center as a theatre usher several nights a week during the season, and then indulged her love of travel with her friends. She visited 58 countries including China, Russia, Australia, and New Zealand. 

Grannie's funeral will be next Tuesday morning at her church, Seminole Heights Baptist in Tampa. Daryl will be officiating. We would appreciate your continued support and prayers for our family. 

Grannie at Davis' baptism in June. 

Grannie with all 6 of her great-grandkids at Easter this year. 

Grannie feeding one of Uncle Daniel's goats. 

Mother's Day 2012

Grannie with her grandsons in 2010. 

Grannie at Daryl's seminary graduation in 2009