Brenda Lee Bates, known by her family as “Pee-Wee” and “Nanny”, age 83, passed away on Thursday, June 19, 2025.
She was born on November 3, 1941, to E.L. and Minnie Hooker. Brenda enjoyed fishing, playing bingo, and playing cards. Her favorite pass time in the summer was working in her yard, watching and feeding her birds and plants. She loved to cut up and have fun, especially joking with her children when they would claim which was the favorite child, although she loved each child equally. She was loved by everyone that knew her.
Brenda’s faith was not about buildings or pews, it was in her heart, in the way she treated people, and in the love, she showed every single day. Brenda had a quiet, steady kind of faith that spoke louder than words. She believed in grace, kindness, and doing good wherever she could. You did not have to hear her talk about Jesus to know she walked with him; you could see it in the way she lived.
A visitation for Brenda will be held on Monday, June 23, 2025, from 2 p.m. until 3 p.m. at Akins Funeral Home in Russellville, Alabama. A funeral service will follow at 3 p.m. in the funeral home chapel. Brenda will be laid to rest at Ridge Cemetery in Golden, Mississippi.
Brenda is survived by her sons, Van Bates and Rickey (Susan) Bates; daughter, Jenny Roberson; grandchildren, Jacob (Hillary) Bates, Ashley Bates, Anna (Chase) Hopkins, Stephanie (Clayton) Straight, Jesse (Kristin) Bates; great-grandchildren, Brooklyn Bates, Kallie Bates, Maddie Elkins, Abel Jones, Kristian Doss, Alexis Doss, Akyrah Kirkman, Cash Hopkins, Ayla Kay Hopkins, Brody Bates, and Braxton Bates; sister, Marie Mason; and brother, Robert Hooker. She is also survived by a host of nieces and nephews who were very special to her, as well as many friends, neighbors, and other family members.
She was preceded in death by her parents, E.L. and Minnie Hooker; husband, Waldrep “Ras” Bates; daughter, Charlotte Lee Bates; great-grandson, Brantlee Ray Presley; brothers, Bill Hooker and Jack Hooker; and sisters, Doris Baker, Jean Nichols, and Mary Colburn.
Memories and condolences may be shared at akinsfh.com.
