Beulah Long Leonard

Beulah Lillie Long Leonard, 88, of Pine Top Road, went on to be with the Lord Wednesday evening, April 18, 2007. Glory be to the Father and the Son and to the Holy Spirit. Amen. She had been seriously ill for a little over a week. The funeral will be at 2 p.m. Saturday at Linwood Methodist Church, where she was a member, by the Revs. Sandy Young and Cynthia Arnold. Burial will follow at Forest Hill Memorial Park. Mrs. Leonard was born in Yadkin County on October 24, 1918, to Virgil Lee Long and Charity Lillie Roberson. The youngest and last surviving member of a large family, she was preceded in death by her brothers and sisters, Pierce, Hubert, Roby, Worth, Marvin, Evie and Iris. She married at a relatively young age to Craig Brannon. After her husband’s early death and as a young widow, she moved to Lexington. She worked in local clothing industries at Siceloff Manufacturing, Manhatten Shirt Company, and Edgewood Apparel and was a dedicated and hard worker as well as an accomplished seamstress in her own right. A lifelong enjoyment for her was planting and caring for plants and flowers, enjoying the outdoors, and spending time with family and friends. Mrs. Leonard was a devoted mother to her only son, Robert, and loving wife to her husband, Robert Franklin Leonard, whom she married on December 23, 1949. Their honeymoon was spent in Roanoke, Va., and later in life they were able to fulfill a dream of traveling to Hawaii together. Mr. Leonard preceded her in death on January 11, 1998, after being married 48 years. Surviving are a son, Robert Leonard and wife, Julia, of Lexington; stepson, Reginald Leonard and wife, Patsy; grandchildren whom she loved dearly, Sherri Smith and husband, Michael, Kathy Rummage and husband, Shannon; and her great grandchildren, Deanna Sawtelle and Kyle Rummage. The family would like to thank the staff of the Life Center of Davidson County for the time she spent there until her admittance to the Brian Center. The staff was very caring and kind to her and she loved going there every day. Also thank you to the staff at the Brian Center that cared for her during her time there. The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at Davidson Funeral Home and other times at her home. Memorials may be made to Linwood United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 82, Linwood, NC 27299; Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, NC 28201; or the Life Center of Davidson County, 601 West Center Street, Lexington, NC 27292.