Emma (Gem) Calcote

Emma (Gem) Calcote was born May 16, 1909 in Argo, Alabama, and died at The Bonner Place, Jacksonville, Texas, at 4 p.m. March 17, 2007, just two months from before her 98th birthday. She lived with two of her sisters at Bonner Place for nine years, and fought valiantly to recover from a broken hip and other illnesses. At 98 she continued to do her best, but said that she was ready to join her husband, parents, five sisters and three brothers in heaven.

She attended Tennessee Colony High School where she was a good student and a great basketball player.

One dear sister’s name was Jewell, and Emma soon was being called Gem, a nickname that followed her forever. The two sisters won a beauty contest, with the prize being a trip to Hollywood, which their parents certainly did not allow. She was an extraordinary seamstress and an outstanding cook, especially known for her baking. She excelled in Angela’s ladies wear shop in Palestine, which had become her home since 1929. She loved helping people choose the appropriate article, even altering items to be helpful. Often she said this was the favorite time of her life.

Emma was survived by her daughter, Barbara Anne Dewberry and her husband James and her granddaughter Angela Farris, all of Dallas; and grandson, Louis Farris III and his wife Diane, and great-grandchildren, Drew, Michelle and Grace Farris, of Denver, and her brother John Q. Massey of San Juan, Puerto Rica, nieces Mary Simms and Marjorie Brashcar and husband Bill of Dallas, her niece Patsy Johnson of Palestine, and many other wonderful nieces, nephews and other extended family members that she loved dearly, including the Newburn and Tilley families of Jacksonville.

The Bailey Foster Funeral Home conducted the internment at the Tennessee Colony Cemetery on March 18, 2007, at 2 p.m. Gem asked that in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to Bonner Place, Jacksonville. A memorial celebration of her life is planned for May, when her brother, grandson and family can attend.
 

April 15, 2007

Information from The Jacksonville Daily Progress