Fannie Medley
On February 18, 1932, Nathaniel and Flora Wallace were blessed by our Lord and Savior with a child. Not just any child, but a child of God in every sense of the word. Born in Whitesburg, Ga., Fannie Mae Wallace graced this earth with a glorious smile and a giving heart.
Before moving to Carrollton, Ga., and then on to Chattanooga, she became a stellar student at Howard High School. She then went on to Paine College and in her later years graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. She was the integral part of the beginning of WIN, a work incentive program for the State of Tennessee, which helped put a grand number of unemployed Black mothers into the workforce in Chattanooga.
Fannie was a dedicated member of Phillips Temple C.M.E. Church. Raising four kids and three grandchildren, her plate was always full. She then moved to Georgia to help her firstborn with her child and put her loving hands on her baby boy. She became a member of Chapel Hill United Methodist Church, where, as always, she pitched in everywhere she could. She was the head of Meals on Wheels, feeding the needy until her health began to take its toll on her. She survived a stroke and a heart attack and beat lung cancer and kept her family striving until she was called home by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
She was preceded in death by her mother and father, Nathaniel and Flora Wallace; her daughter Ruth Elayne Walton; and her grandson DeArmond. Antoine Walton.
She is survived by her son, Kenneth L. Walton, of Chattanooga; daughter, Alycia D. Medley, of Atlanta; son, J. Chris Matthews, of Atlanta; granddaughters, Michelle Evans, Chattanooga, Andrea R. Toston, Atlanta, Javon Tatum, Atlanta; grandsons, Edward Thomas, Chattanooga, Christopher D. Bradley, Birmingham, Jalen Tatum, Atlanta, and a host of aunts, uncles, and cousins.
Public viewing will be held from 9-11:30 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 21, at the funeral home, followed by a graveside service at noon at Forest Hills Cemetery.
Arrangements are by John P. Franklin Funeral Home, 1101 Dodds Avenue, 423-622-9995.
The Lord has called upon his angels to bring forth His child. May her spirit shine down among us until our last days. She has gone up yonder to be with her Lord.