Clara Helen Fisher

September 28, 1931 - September 7, 2018

Clara Helen Fisher was born in Millers Chapel on September 28, 1931. Millers Chapel is a rural community near Jonesville. Clara was married to Kernie Lee Lawson in 1951. The marriage ended in divorce in 1960. Clara resumed her maiden name and never re-married. Apart from short stays in Norton and Bristol, Virginia, Clara was a lifelong resident of Millers Chapel. She was a member of the Millers Chapel United Methodist Church. She also attended Steep Rock Pentecostal Holiness Church. Clara was preceded in death by her parents, Ewing Lee and Josie Williams Fisher, her brother Cecil Kyle Fisher, her brother-in-law, John Paul Jerrell and her nephew, Paul Allen Jerrell. She is survived by two sons, Gale Lee Lawson and Larry Anthony (Tony) Lawson, of Millers Chapel, and by her sister, Artie Irene Fisher Jerrell, also of Millers Chapel. Clara was a second mother to her nieces and nephews and their spouses, children and grandchildren: Sonja and Richard Duncan, Aaron, Nicole (Riebe) and Alex Duncan, Candice, Justin and Aidan Lane; Paul and Patricia Jerrell, Jamie, Josh, Mia (Jerrell), Jakob and John Paul Rivers, Nicole Jerrell, Gabbi, Paul and Savannah Hutson, Sarah Jerrell; Jeffrey, Sharon (Surber), Devon and Morgan Jerrell; Sharon Jerrell; Scott, Debbie (Meade) and Jon Jerrell, Savannah, T. J., Kameron (Jerrell) and Wesson Quinley. Clara’s nieces and nephews called her “Aunt” or “Fat Aunt.” Her son Tony sometimes called her ‘Fat Mama Fish” when he was out of her reach. Lee called her “The Lady.” Clara was also a second mother to a neighbor, Linda Ingle, her younger cousins, Sherry, Arthur, Kevin, Jacob and Seth Garrett, and to a close friend of her son’s, Yenli Yeh, who called her “MaMa Fisher.” Sherry and her family called Clara “Murr” or “Granny Murr.” Clara loved all the name calling. Clara started working as an upholsterer and shop assistant for Fisher Brothers in Ben Hur after she graduated from Jonesville High School in 1949. She continued working outside the home after being married, first for Fisher Brothers and then for her brother Cecil, who opened his own upholstery business in Jonesville. As the years passed, Clara was a clerk at Norman’s Department Store, a certified nurse’s aide, a key punch operator, a teacher of literacy and jobs training, and a seamstress, inspector and supervisor in a succession of garment factories operating in Dryden, Pennington and Jonesville. Clara’s last job outside the home was with Paul Van and Lynn Sportswear in Jonesville. Her last day of work there was on June 29, 1984. She suffered from chronic pain in her hips and back and could no longer sit for hours on end. Clara was an accomplished seamstress. She made her own clothes and the clothes of her children until they were well into adulthood. She sewed curtains, bed and bath linens and she kept the clothes of the extended family in good repair until she no longer had the strength to operate a machine. Clara was never wealthy, though she earned enough to maintain a household, give to the church, contribute to the cost of her sons’ education and support family members when needed. She didn’t save money for herself; she gave almost everything away. She gave with joy. In 1987, Clara’s mother Josie became so ill that she needed a live-in caregiver. Clara moved into her mother’s house and, with the help of her siblings, Irene and Cecil, and her son Lee, she met Josie’s increasingly complex needs for the next eleven years. During that time, she helped organize a home church in Josie’s bedroom for friends and neighbors. Since Josie couldn’t go to church, church came to her. Services were often led by Homer and Ruby Blanken. In 1996, Clara helped organize and run the King’s Kids, a program of Christian education and supervised play for young children at Millers Chapel United Methodist Church. With the help of parents, church members and Yenli Yeh, Clara served the King’s Kids for ten years. She loved the children, though she was a disciplinarian known to speak sharply, flip disobedient ears, tug hair at the nape of the neck and rap on thick skulls with a surprisingly hard knuckle. Clara suffered from memory loss and associated symptoms during the last years of her life. She lived at home in Millers Chapel until she passed away at 7:30 a.m. on September 7, 2018. Her sons, Lee and Tony, are grateful to the staff of the Mountain Empire Program of All Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), who helped Clara live at home for the past three years, even when she could no longer contribute to her own care. They are grateful to the staff of Lonesome Pine Hospital and Ballad Hospice for the quality care she received in the last days of life. They are thankful for the nurses, providers, caregivers and family members who helped Clara with intimate care at home, especially Peggy Coomer, Bickley Craven, Melinda Fleenor, Jessica Galloway, Sherry Garrett, Kelli Hamilton, Linda Ingle, Devon Jerrell, Kameron Jerrell, Sharon Jerrell, Kathy McGeorge, Frankie McPherson, Debra Pace, Sharon Penley, Sheila Quillen, Savannah Quinley, Ethel Reese and Yenli Yeh. The family will receive friends from 5:00 until 7:00 p.m. Sunday, September 9, at Robinette Funeral Home in Jonesville. The funeral service will follow at 7:00 p.m. with Rev. Homer Blanken and Ruby Blanken officiating. Graveside services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Monday, September 10, in the Millers Chapel Cemetery.