Mary C. Palmer

Mary Culpepper Palmer, 84, passed from this life into the presence of her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, April 23, 2023, at South Central Regional Medical Center in Laurel, Mississippi.  We celebrate this day because we know to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

 She was born July 14, 1938, in Wayne County Mississippi, to George William Culpepper and Effie Mondale Culpepper. 

 In 1958, she married the love of her life, Virgil Allen Palmer, from Wayne County.  In 1963, they built their home in Wayne County where they reared their three children.

She worked at Sigler-Bunch Insurance Agency until 1985.  She then continued working alongside her husband in the family business, Quality Plywood, Inc., which they established in 1976 until her retirement.

She was a faithful member of Liberty Baptist Church since 1963.

A loving wife for almost 62 years, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, she was the matriarch of her family, whom she loved unconditionally and sacrificially.  A life of service will be her legacy.  She is preceded in death by her husband, Virgil A. Palmer; father, George W. Culpepper; mother, Effie Mondale Culpepper; sisters, Hazel Sellers, Connie Farrior; brothers, William “Bill” Culpepper, Robert “Bobby” Culpepper.

She is survived by her son, Reggie Palmer (Denise); daughter, Alecia Wood (Steve); son, Raymond Palmer, all of Waynesboro;  two brothers, Ronald Culpepper of  Deer Park, AL; Darrel Culpepper of Laurel, MS; six grandchildren, Lauren Etheridge (Josh) of Petal, MS; Christen Raanes (Brady) of Hattiesburg, MS;  Holly Shirley (Bobby) of New York, NY; Steven Wood (Raquel) of Laurel, MS; Erin Pacific (Larry) of Laurel, MS; Julie Anna Perry (Jason) of Greensboro, AL.; and eighteen great-grandchildren; and two great-great grandchildren.

Visitation for Mrs. Palmer will be held from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM Tuesday, April 25, 2023, at Liberty Baptist Church, Waynesboro, MS.  Funeral Services will be held at 2:00 PM, Tuesday, April 25, 2023 at Liberty Baptist Church with Rev. Phillip Gandy and Rev. Marvin “Bo” Farrior officiating.  Interment will be held in Liberty Baptist Cemetery in Waynesboro, MS.  Pallbearers are Jimmy Palmer, Joe McMichael, Todd Stokley, Daryl Pitts, Gary Gore, Baron Graham, Cliff Walker, Dwight Holland, and Bobby McMichael.