Annelle Gainous Champion was born September 7, 1933 in Grady County, Georgia to Henry and Launa Morrison Gainous. She passed away Tuesday, December 20, 2016 at Waynesboro Health and Rehabilitation Center in Waynesboro, TN.
She was a retired Maintenance Administrator with AT&T, having worked in Albany, GA; Jacksonville, FL; Marietta, GA; Chattanooga, TN; Athens, TN and several offices in Nashville, TN.
On September 7, 1951 she married her high school sweetheart, Marvin Curtis Champion, who worked for the ACL Railroad in Jacksonville, FL. In 1960 he became a minister and they pastored churches together in Manchester, Smyrna, and Dalton, GA; Sweetwater, Arrington, Eagleville, Springfield, Greenbrier, Waynesboro and Lawrenceburg, TN. She was a loving pastor’s wife and mother, supporting their ministry in every way she could – teaching Sunday School classes, VBS, singing in the choir, visiting shut-ins, all the while working full-time to provide the needed financial support for her family. Her commitment to her faith and family filled her life with joy. She worked tirelessly with AT&T until her retirement and then devoted her days to the continuing care and support of her husband and their work with the Methodist Church. She will be missed by many.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Rev. Marvin Curtis Champion, who died June, 2016. Also by her parents and sisters, Carolyn Ann Gainous, Catherine Connell, Louise Tester and Owida Dow. She is survived by her son, Marvin Richard (Ryan) Champion, Colorado Springs, CO; daughters Miriam Elaine (Ron) Pitt, White House, TN and Carolyn Donna Pate, Murfreesboro, TN. Also, grandchildren, Elizabeth Nicole Pate, Daniel Pate, Jessica Ann (John) Avery, Jeremy Pitt and great-granddaughter, Charlotte Rose Pate. Her surviving sisters, Christell Mills, Nashville, TN and Billie Fay Scott, Bloomington, IL along with several nieces and nephews.
Arrangements are being handled by Neal Funeral Home, 231 N. Military Avenue, Lawrenceburg, Tennessee. A memorial service will be held at a later date.
