Janet Carol Davis Gray, 85, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother entered eternity, dying peacefully in her home in Franklin, TN on Thursday, June 9, 2022.
Janet Carol Davis was born an only child in Byram, MS on August 7, 1936, to Homer Bowman (Jack) Davis, Jr. and Mary Velma Hughes Davis. Following graduation from Mississippi State College for Women (now Mississippi University for Women) in 1957, she married her husband of 55 years, Herman L. Gray. They moved to Corinth, MS in 1958 and quickly became an integral part of the community. In 1994 she was named the Outstanding Citizen of the Year by the Junior Auxiliary of Corinth. Two years after her husband’s death in 2013, Janet moved to Franklin, TN to be near her children, having lived in Corinth for 57 years.
Janet lived a life of faith, serving God through her loyalty to the church and through her service to others. Janet was always generous with her time and talents and also served in a myriad of capacities in her local church and community. In addition, she was quick to make and deliver food to the sick, to share her garden’s roses to brighten someone’s day, to open her home as a gathering space, and to volunteer help whenever she saw a need. She loved to travel, and she and Herman visited all 50 states and numerous foreign countries.
Janet was a successful piano teacher, with hundreds of students over the years. She was also very active in numerous civic organizations including First United Methodist Church in Corinth, National Guild of Piano Teachers, Mississippi Music Teachers Association, Crossroads Museum, Corinth Public Library, and various other organizations. She served not only locally as part of the Junior Auxiliary of Corinth, but also nationally as the president of the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries. In Tennessee, she was active at Brentwood United Methodist Church, performed as a member of the Nashville Piano Study Club, and participated in other local activities. In 2016 she was honored by the Music Teachers National Association as a Foundation Fellow.
Janet is preceded in death by her husband, Herman Lafayette Gray, and her son, Glenn Davis Gray. She is survived by three children, Linda (Richard) Wofford of Franklin, TN; Mary Ellen (Mark) Donaldson of Brentwood, TN; David (Ana-Maria) Gray of Arlington, VA; by her eight grandchildren Scott (Maria) Wofford of Seattle, WA; Kate (Nick Minton) Wofford of Philadelphia, PA; Julie (Mike) Woodnorth of Nashville, TN; Rachel (Will) Nelson of Nashville, TN; Clarissa Donaldson of Brentwood, TN; Mary Grace Donaldson of Nashville, TN; Jackson Gray of Arlington, VA; Caroline Gray of Arlington, VA; and by her great-grandchildren Victoria Wofford, June Woodnorth, Theo Minton Wofford, and Isaac Nelson.
Janet’s family extends special thanks to caregiver Linda Biggs for her devoted service since 2020.
Two services of remembrance and celebration will occur. The first service will be on Thursday, June 23, 2022, at Brentwood United Methodist Church in Brentwood, TN with visitation at 1:00 pm and a service of remembrance and celebration at 2:00 pm. A second service will be held Saturday, June 25, 2022, at First United Methodist Church in Corinth, MS with visitation at 2:00 pm and a service of remembrance and celebration at 3:00 pm. Interment will follow in a private ceremony with the family.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Glenn Davis Gray Scholarship Fund at the Mississippi University for Women or to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, TN.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.memorialcorinth.com for the Gray family.
