Margaret M. (Griffin) Avera

Margaret Maxine (Griffin) Avera, (Age 91) passed away at home on April 22, 2021.
Margaret was married to Troy G. Avera, Sr., (Nashville, GA, Deceased) on Christmas Day, 1945. She and Troy were members at the Thomasville First Baptist Church for more than 40 years. Margaret was born on Sunday morning, Feb. 16, 1930 on a small farm in Alapaha, Ga. to Dallas Rowe Griffin and Perlie Eston Griffin. The Griffins and Averas were early pioneer families in Ga. and Florida. She has three sisters: Tera Morris (Deceased), a nurse for decades at Grady Hospital in Atlanta; Betty Brown, an Administrator for Kraft Foods; and two brothers: Densol Griffin, a banker in Valdosta, and Vinson Griffin, an Agribusiness in Berrien County. The strong Griffin work ethic made each a success in their chosen fields.

She has three sons: Troy G. Avera, Jr. (Airline Pilot, Attorney and Vice Mayor Monticello, (Spouse Gretchen); Charles Terry Avera (Flowers Foods, Spouse Linda); and Stephen Russell Avera (Flowers Foods, Spouse Anne).
Margaret loved and reveled in her seven grandchildren and their accomplishments:
Stephanie (Attorney) and Kevin, Tripp (Transportation Manager), Trent (Electrician), Leigh (Teacher and Fulbright Scholar), Hunter (ICU Nurse) and Harrison (Veterinary Assistant).

Margaret loved her great grandchildren: Noah and Vivienne (Stephanie), Griffin, Tripp II, and Tanner (Tripp), Ethan and Jace (Trent) and Athens. When we were on the phone with her we would ask how are you feeling, how are you doing, what did you have for lunch and she would reply, “I’m fine, how are you and the children doing?” That was her focus in life, not herself but all the members of Her Family.

Margaret loved her great grandchildren, and they were always on her mind. In the last few months when even small things became difficult for her, she would fret that she needed to get Christmas cards and presents out to her great-grandchildren then followed by Valentine’s Day and Easter. “I’ve got to get these things in the mail. They have to know that I am thinking of them. They have to have something from me to open.” On other occasions when all her boys were still working, she would comment, “Well Troy is in London, you’re in Boise, and Steve is in Washington. You are all over the world and I am praying that you all travel safe.” She loved the moon and especially a full moon. She often said she’d look up in the night sky and knew that we were looking at the same moon and it made her feel closer to everyone in her family, wherever they might be.

We are thankful for Mother’s good friends and neighbors, Sue Stephens, Jake Jones, Olin Brinson and Linda Cofer that have been so kind and generous with their time, help and visits with Mother. We also are grateful for Melissa Hickox for your kind attentions and care for her over a number of years, especially during these last long hard days and nights. These fine and compassionate people were very important to her and to us. Mother really enjoyed First Baptist Church and though the last few years kept her at home she never missed a Sunday Service on television. At times during the Covid quarantine we’d call on Sunday morning and she’d say, “Can you call back a little later, I’m watching the First Baptist Service on TV.”

Our Dad met Mother in 1945, just after the end of World War II, and they shared a marriage of more than 62 years. Dad often said that finding Mother was the best day’s work he ever did! Mother and Dad were a complete and solid team and gave us a loving and caring family life. Dad pursued a successful career with Flowers Foods (1949-1989), starting as a route-man serving Monticello, then as division manager in Tallahassee, as Plant President in Opelika, Ala, Atlanta and Thomasville Ga.

During the change in locations Mother continued to pursue her career in education as a teacher and librarian, first as Director of University Heights Baptist Church School in Tallahassee and later as Librarian for Pepperell School in Opelika, Ala. Mother was an accomplished athlete in high school, playing forward for the Alapaha High School basketball team. Her sister Betty played guard. That year the team made the Division Tournament in Douglas, Ga.
Our Mother’s greatest legacy is the family life she created for her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Mother was always in motion and her primary concern and focus was always her family. We will be forever grateful that she managed all of this with working, getting us fed, to school, picked up, taken to ball practice, made dinner, back to ball games, laundered and pressed our clothes, read bedtime stories, and all the while supporting Dad in his career advancement. It was the little things that mattered: On Saturday nights she polished our shoes, laid out our Sunday clothes and reviewed everyone’s Sunday School lesson. The last person on her list was herself.

She was a hard-working partner with Dad and they achieved a great deal - Together. They made a wonderful life for us and we are so grateful and thankful. Dad was very devoted to Mother and he called her his “Commander in Chief.” She was in turn devoted to him. It was so incredibly wonderful to see the affections they displayed, holding hands, walking together and sitting together in church. We never heard a cross or unkind word between them. She was very careful to select things Dad enjoyed for dinner, kept the house quiet when he was resting, and just always concerned about his health and welfare. Both of them put others first and themselves last.
Mother was a very elegant and beautiful southern lady. She always looked her best and would say, “I need to get dressed to go to the Grocery.” She would always be coiffured and stylish but not extravagant. She took a little and made it into abundance. Mother was a strong and courageous woman, and she loved her children. All of us can say that we never felt a moment that we might be unloved or unsupported. We have learned much from our Mother. She taught us character and integrity, table manners, why you look people in the eye, smile and mean it, being gentle and kind to everyone, expressing yourself but appreciating that everyone has their own opinion, and a love for Jesus Christ. We have beautiful fond memories of a wonderful life with her. Family dinners where we learned so much about love and life, family vacations where we learned history and beauty, family church attendance where we found salvation.

Mother was a strong woman and she had to be to keep up with three boys and her husband!
When we received the crushing diagnosis last fall, she was the calmest person in the room. She said, “I am not afraid to die. This is something I have to do by myself, but I am not alone. I have faith that there is a life for me in heaven.” Then again putting herself last on the list she said, “How can I help you through this?”

Services are on Friday, April 30, at 1 p.m., at The Thomasville First Baptist Church, 210 N. Broad St., Thomasville, Ga. 31792, with reception to immediately follow. Private Family Interment service will be at Memory Garden Cemetery.

Eternal rest grant upon her O Lord and let perpetual light shine upon her forever. The Sweetest Gift is a Mother’s Smile. She filled our lives with love and compassion. She will be greatly missed.