December 21, 1919 - December 26, 2007

On December 26, 2007, Mae Wilson passed gently away at the Deerfield Ridge Assisted Living Center in Boone, NC.  She was 88 years old.

Mae began her life on December 21, 1919, in Lamoni, Iowa, as the daughter of Mark Edward Wilson and Ethel Gladys Earl Wilson.  She grew up in Decatur, NE, on the banks of the Missouri River along with two loving brothers, Darrel and Kenny.  She attended business college in Grand Island, NE, from which she pursued work in Washington D.C. at the start of World War II.

Mae was a member of the Greatest Generation described so well by Tom Brokaw in his book of the same name.  She provided superb administrative support to many senior Army officers in the Pentagon during the war and retired over 33 years later, in 1974, as the secretary to the Commander of the Military Traffic Management and Terminal Service. On that occasion, Mae was honored with the Meritorious Service Award, the highest decoration for civilians bestowed by the U.S. Army.

IN addition to distinguished service to her country, Mae was an accomplished golfer.  For many years she was a member of the ladies golf association at Fort Dupont Golf Course in Washington, D.C., where she won numerous titles, both club championships and inter-club matches.  After retirement to Pilot Mountain, N.C. she continued her golfing accomplishments, winning the ladies championship at Pilot Knob Park Golf Club 10 times and the Low Gross for Ladies prize of the American Golf Association for Seniors nine times.

She is survived by her brother, Darrel, and his wife, Bev, of Hayden, Idaho; two nephews, Scott Wilson of La Grande, Oregon, and Gregg Wilson of Plano, Texas; a niece, Sherri K. Lionberger of Dalton Gardens, Idaho; and an "honorary son", Ron Redmon of Boone, N.C.

She was preceded in death by an infant brother, Donald; her brother, Ken; and by her life partner of 57 years, Hazel S. Redmon.

A service to commemorate Mae's life will be held on Saturday, January 12, 2008, at 11:30 a.m. at the Simmons Grove Baptist Church in Pilot Mountain, NC.

In lieu of flowers, Mae's loved ones ask that a contribution be made in her memory to one's local hospice organization or to the National Endowment for Alzheimer's Research (N.E.A.R.) at 3720 Spruce Street, Suite 101, Philadelphia, PA 19104, or through www.memorymatters.com.

Cox-Needham Funeral Home of Pilot Mountain is assisting  the Wilson family.