BELDEN – Mary Frances Vinson Stephenson, 89, died Monday, Oct. 26, 2020 at NMMC after a brief illness. Born in the Mount Vernon Community of Lee County on March 6, 1931, she was the first of three children born to Roy Lee and Ottis Clayton Vinson. A lifelong Lee Countian, Mary Frances married Ray Stephenson in December of 1950, a marriage of 55 years until his death on June 11, 2006. A master seamstress, Mary Frances worked many years for Hunter-Sadler. She became a housewife, a devoted partner to Ray and loving mother to Vance and Richard. She took special interest in her three grandchildren but was especially close to Davis, her later-in-life grandson who is 7 yrs old. Her hobbies included reading, tending the flowers and yard at the Stephenson home place and watching old westerns on TV, especially Gun Smoke. A quiet, dignified lady with great inner strength through her faith, Mrs. Stephenson was a long time member of the Belden Baptist Church.
A service celebrating her life will be held at 2 PM Friday, October 30, 2020 at the Tupelo Chapel of Holland Funeral Directors with burial to follow in Belden Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5 PM-7PM Thursday and Noon-service time on Friday, all at Holland-Tupelo Chapel. For those unable to attend, the service may be viewed at www.hollandfuneraldirectors.com/livestreaming.
She is survived by her two sons, Vance Stephenson of Belden and Richard Stephenson and his wife, LaVonna of Guntown; her grandchildren, James Stephenson and wife, Haley, Rachel Stephenson and Davis Stephenson. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Ray and her siblings, Virginia Vinson Gibson and Wayne Vinson.
Condolences may be emailed to hollandfuneraldirectors@comcast.net.
