Mrs. Eva Mae Brown

Mrs. Eva Mae Shealy Brown, one of the oldest of seven children (four biological and three adopted), of the late George Ernest Shealy and Mary Jane (Tince) Gray Shealy, was born April 28,1940 in Prosperity, SC in the family home.  She entered eternal rest at the age of 84 on August 12, 2024 while living in Atlanta, GA area in a home with her sister, Lillie Florence and brother, George Robert.

Our beloved Eva Mae accepted Christ as her savior at an early age.  Reared in a Christian home, she joined and remained a member of Mt. Moriah AME Church.

She was educated in the public schools of Newberry County, South Carolina.  She first attended the Mt. Moriah School and graduated from Gallman High School in 1960.  After graduating from high school, she entered the work force even though she had been working as a child in the cotton fields that her family sharecropped.  With diploma in hand, she became a domestic and worked for white families in her hometown to support herself.

In 1964, she would marry a very handsome and charming, Odus Lee Brown.  Odus Lee was a local young man whom she had known for a while.  Their union remained for 53 years until Odus Lee passed away in 2017.

After a few years, Eva Mae found a new job at Newberry College as a cook, where she cultivated her love for cooking.  She worked hard there and learned a lot about the food service industry.  Years later, she would work at Anderson Hosiery Mill in Prosperity, but eventually retired from Michelin Corporation in Lexingtonas a tire inspector.  For over twenty years for higher pay , Eva Mae would the long journey to Lexington every day.  Even though she always worked full time.  Eva Mae spent several years as an Avon Representative.  It seems that she sold Avon to everyone in Prosperity.  She sold just as muchas she bought and always had lots of perfume and powder that kept her and her home smelling good.

Eva Mae enjoyed a happy life as a wife.  She equally enjoyed being a financial contributor to her household and loved to shop!  She constantly bought items for her home and herself.  She was very savvy at not walking into her home with shopping bags.  So that Odus Lee would not know that she had been shopping again, she would stash bags in her shrubs and retrieve them at a later time.

One part of her life that was difficult was not having a child until later.  When she and Odus Lee became parents to her only child, Travis Lemont Brown Travis became the center of her world.  She was a very proud Boy-Mom who spoiled her child with everything that she could find.  Travis wore designer clothes and she never loved anything or anyone more thanTravis.  She always felt that his welfare was more important than anyone else's.  She displayed the full depth of a mother's love until her death.

The only love that ever came close to her love for Travis was the love of her grandchildren.  She loved them all.  When Jamaya and Shy were younger, she would always have them nearby and loved to take them on vacation.  Since they were most recently in the home with her, she also talked about Brooklyn and Camilla.

Aside from being a loving mother and grandmother, Eva Mae loved her church and community.  At Mt. Moriah AME Church, she was a very active member who enjoyed many roles.  She was one of the first members of the Usher Board.  She was a long serving class leader, sang on the Mt. Moriah choir and was a past president of the church's Missionary Society of which she died as a Torch Lighter.

In the local community, she was a part of the Ladies Aide Society #23 and was an officer in the Mt. Moriah Burial Aide Society, which later became the Burial Aide Society of 391.  Additionally, she had been a part of the Evergreen Garden Club and a trip organizer.  She helped arrange several trips from Mississippi to Canada, but her most popular trip became her Apple Picking Trip each fall where participants would admire the colorful foliage from the bus as they made their way to the mountain orchard to buy apples.

In her final year, Eva Mae enjoyed her stay in Atlanta.  She participated in many family gatherings/vacations and enjoyed the conveniences offered by the city life.  She said that she ate at restaurants more in that year than she had her whole life.  She also enjoyed having her groceries delivered to the doorstep and kept a running list of wanted items at all times.  She loved late night snacks like Oreo cookies or a bowl of ice cream.

Her death came at a very surprising time because she seemed to be doing so well.  She and her sister Lillie became constant companions.  Each day Lillie would prepare a simple breakfast, then Eva Mae would ask Lillie what she wanted to eat for dinner.  If the ingredients were not in the house she would immediately write it on her listor call her niece to bring it after work.  She would prepare a four course dinner everyday.  She enjoyed preparing the meats for her sister and took pride in the flavorful taste.  Besides cooking, she also enjoyed talking on the phone with her granddaughter Jamaya or her friends everyday.  Sometimes a few times a day.  She loved some good gossip and was always very nosey.  She particularly liked being in Atlanta and watching the activity in the neighborhood.  She often sat by the window with her puzzle book and remarked on what the neighbors were doing.

In closing, we are grateful that God loaned our beloved Eva Mae to us for 84 short years.  She was a devoted family member and loyal friend.  Her absence will leave a hole that no one or nothing can ever fill.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 53 years, Odus Lee; her parents; her brother, Johnnie B. Shealy and an adopted brother, LC Williams.

She leaves to cherish her life and memories her son, Travis L. Brown (Newberry, SC); her grandchildren, Shykeera Worthy (newberry, SC), Tyquan Brown (Jenkinsville, SC), Jamaya Brown (Newberry, SC), Ka'Neria Carter (Newberry, SC), Brooklyn Brown (Newberry, SC) and Camilla Brown (Newberry, SC);her great granddaughter Ava Whitaker; her siblings, Annie M. Berry (Charlotte, NC), Quenn Ruff (Little Mountain, SC), George R. Shealy (Lithia Springs, GA) and Lillie F. Harris (Lithia Springs, GA) and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

Visitation Sunday August 18, 2024 from 1 pm to 5 pm in the parlor of Wilson Funeral Home.

Funeral Service 11:00 am Monday August 19, 2024 at Mt. Moriah AME Church in Prosperity, SC.

  Wilson Funeral Home is honored to assist the Brown family.

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