Lillie Mae Phillips Midyette

Lillie Mae Phillips Midyette devoted mother, grandmother, great grandmother, wife, sister, and friend, died peacefully of natural causes at the age of 86.

She was born in Kinston, NC on April 13, 1939. She was the 3rd child born to Graham Albert Phillips and Rosa Virginia George. Her brother was named Graham Phillips Jr. and her sister is named Betty Phillips.

Most of her youth was lived in Warsaw, NC. There she graduated from high school and went on to East Carolina University. She met Kenneth Lambert Midyette in school and they married and produced 3 sons. Their names are Ken, Lewis and Tommy.

One of Lillie Mae's first jobs was in a retail store in downtown Warsaw. There were many cousins in Warsaw who ran a farming business. Lillie Mae worked the tobacco fields for a time and decided she didn't like doing that much. She also worked in Wake County's public school system for awhile. Art teacher's assistant was another of her titles in Wake County's public school system. Lillie Mae took a correspondence course in design from an institution in Chicago. In the late 70's, she went on to start her own custom drapery-making business. She enjoyed this work the most and continued with it for about 47 years. Customers were impressed with her excellent work and commented on how very talented she was.

Lillie Mae enjoyed rock, pop and country music, politics, conversation, biographies, history and her pets. She was a very compassionate person who very often rescued stray cats and dogs.

Possessing high morals and strong principles, she lived a life following biblical teachings. Many who came in contact with her can attest to how much they enjoyed her company.

She is survived by Ken & wife Robin Midyette, Lewis & wife Page Midyette, Tommy Midyette, Lewis' sons Kyle & wife Britanny, and Cameron & wife Hilary, and Kyle's children Clara and Elise,