Mrs Catherine Cheek Hall

Catherine Cheek Hall entered the Church Triumphant on Tuesday, May 3, 2016. Born Aug. 6, 1915, in a little mill house in Saxapahaw, Catherine was a daughter of the late Julian Mebane Cheek and Mary Elizabeth Ingold Cheek. She was one of eight children, and her brother, Dr. Paul Cheek of Elon, is the only surviving sibling. Catherine attended Campbell Junior College, having worked at Burlington Industries to save the $700 she needed to attend school. She was a “twister,” which meant that she twisted the yarn together onto a hook before it went onto the loom. It was here that “this little girl from a cotton farm in Alamance County met a boy from a tobacco farm in Cumberland County.” Catherine went on to East Carolina Teachers College, and married her husband, Dr. Cullen Hall, on Aug. 21, 1943. While her husband completed his residency, Catherine taught second grade, and later returned to school for special education certification. The couple lived in Spartanburg before moving to Salisbury in 1948. That same year, the Halls joined First United Methodist Church, where they were active members for many years. Cullen was an OB-GYN in solo practice, while Catherine taught special education at Wiley and Duncan schools from 1963 to 1975. After retirement, the couple traveled extensively in the 1980s, visiting the Holy Land and Italy, and seeing a good bit of the United States as well. The Halls had four children: Martha, who died of multiple sclerosis in 2008; Pat of Cary; Joe (Pam) of Salisbury; and Bill (Carol) of Durham. Catherine also had six grandchildren, Amy Sue Lumpkin, Marjorie Catherine Hall, Rebecca Leigh Hall, Mary Elizabeth Hall, Alex Andrew Hall and Leslie Caroline Hall; and five great-grandchildren, Abigail Catherine Wenzel, Charlotte Elizabeth Wenzel, Joshua David Warren, Eric Joseph Warren and Clara Teresa Hall. The family gathered last summer to celebrate her 100th birthday. She remarked then that she felt the same way at 100 that she’d felt all her life. After her husband’s death in 2002, Catherine made four beautiful scrapbooks chronicling their life together. It was good therapy for her, she said. The Halls were original residents of Trinity Oaks, moving there in 1993. Catherine baked sourdough bread for new residents, and Cullen helped install raised beds to grow vegetables. Catherine moved to assisted living in 2015, and was content with the transition. She kept the scrapbooks under her bed and always brought them out during family gatherings, including her birthday last summer. Catherine was predeceased by three sisters and three brothers: Margie Cheek Upchurch, Eula Cheek Vaughan, Rachel Mavis Cheek, James Glenn Cheek, William Candler Cheek and Edward Lee Cheek. On achieving the 100-year milestone, Catherine said, “To have a long life and so many good memories is very satisfying and fulfilling.” A memorial service will be held at 2 PM Saturday (May 7) First United Methodist Church, conducted by Dr. Mark Conforti. The family will receive friends following the service in the church fellowship hall. Memorials: The Arc of Rowan County, 108 Dorsett Drive, Salisbury, NC 28144, or the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, 9771 Southern Pine Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28273. Summersett Funeral Home is serving the Hall family. Online condolences may be made at www.summersettfuneralhome.com.

Mrs Catherine Cheek Hall

August 6, 1915 - May 3, 2016