Madison Zehmer

Madison Lee Zehmer, 29, died as a result of a tragic drowning accident on November 4, 2026.

Madison was the oldest of three daughters and is survived by her parents, Lee and Brooke Zehmer; her twin sister, Kinsley; and her younger sister, Mollie.

Madison attended Lexington City Schools through 10th grade and graduated from high school at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in Durham. A graduate of both Wake Forest University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she was an avid historian and researcher. She was able to combine both interests in her work as a map cataloger at St Louis Mercantile Library in Missouri. Through her extensive work in genealogy she identified and traced the Zehmer family’s Ashkenazi Jewish heritage.

Madison’s passions were music, poetry and the outdoors. An accomplished musician, she began her love of choral music in the Lexington City Schools choral programs. As an undergraduate, she sang in both the Wake Forest Concert Choir and the Wake Forest Chamber Choir. She also played the piano beautifully and was learning to play the violin and the banjo. She had recently published two books of poetry under a pseudonym and was honored to be chosen to read her poetry in Chicago and Los Angeles.

She was happiest when she was outdoors and hiked throughout the United States. No matter where she traveled, the trails of western North Carolina were her favorite. She also rock climbed and bouldered whenever she had the opportunity.

Madison loved her family dearly and cherished the times they spent together. Along with her immediate family she will be deeply missed by her grandmother, Jeri Wynn Bowyer (“Gigi”) and her adopted grandfather Charles Bowyer; her grandfather, John Zehmer (“Papete”); and her aunts and uncles, Shelly and Christian Bishop, Paige Staples, Bud Zehmer, John Zehmer and Kathy Manning, Jennie Alwood, and Rosie McSweeney. She also shared a special bond with her cousins, Bailey Bishop Haker (husband Luke and daughter Rollins), Mac Staples, Wynn Staples, Frances Zehmer and Jamie Zehmer.

A service will be held at First Presbyterian Church in Lexington, NC on Saturday, November 14, at 2:00 pm officiated by Dr. Stan Ott. Memorials can made be made to the Montreat Conference Center at https://montreat.org/forms/memorialgiving

May her memory be a blessing.