Gwen Britain Grant 1948 - 2024

 

Gwen Brittain Grant

MARCH 5, 1948 – FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Gwen Grant, age 75, of Canton, Georgia, went home to be with the Lord on February 16, 2024. Mrs. Grant was born on March 5, 1948, in Fayetteville, Arkansas to the late Fern and Claude Clifton “Red” Brittain. She was a loving and dedicated daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, and friend.

Mrs. Grant leaves behind her siblings, brother, Greg Brittain of Augusta, Georgia, and sister, Stacy Brittain Sova of Cleveland, Ohio. 

Gwen remained married to the “love of her life,” Mr. Gary Leigh Grant for nearly 54 years. Mr. and Mrs. Gary Grant were married in Atlanta, Georgia on June 12, 1970 and began their family in Dayton, Ohio. Gwen leaves behind her three children, daughter, Lori Grant Martin (W. Andrew) of Charlotte, North Carolina; son, Robert Alan Grant (Mandy) of Canton, Georgia; and son, Ryan Leigh Grant (Katie) of John’s Creek, Georgia.

Gwen’s family was always her priority and she cherished "each moment” with them. Her grandchildren Emma Martin (22), Charlie Martin (20), Ethan Grant (20), Reese Grant (17), Molly Martin (16), Ella Grant (14), Nora Grant (12) and Brynn Grant (8) especially, brought her great joy. From the sidelines she cheered them on in golf, soccer, baseball, gymnastics, cheer, dance, theater and art shows; each birthday and milestone celebrated with a card signed with her favorite affirmation, “Jesus Loves You and So Do I, Love GG.”

Her legacy will be her servant’s heart and demonstrative faithfulness to her Heavenly Father and her deep and abiding personal relationship with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. She shared the Gospel story far and wide through ministries in her many hometowns of Ohio, Indiana, Florida, and Georgia as well as through global missions in Singapore, Peru and Croatia. Mrs. Grant was a member of Roswell United Methodist Church, True Identity Ministries, Bible Study Fellowship, Community Bible Study, and NOMADS, a Methodist disaster recovery ministry where she, Gary and their faithful Labradoodle, Gus, traveled the country in their RV volunteering their labor skills to rebuilding communities in need. 

The family would like to thank Dr. Erin Dunbar, founding physician of the Brain Tumor Center and Director of Neuro-Oncology at Piedmont Atlanta Hospital for her skilled care of Gwen from diagnosis in May 2021 until present. Dr. Dunbar personally oversaw the treatment of Gwen’s Glioblastoma Tumor and her team was tender and gracious to Gwen and her entire family during the nearly three years she lived and thrived with her diagnosis.

Additionally, they would like to thank Accent Care, Inpatient Hospice Center in Cumming, Georgia for the compassion they showed to Mrs. Grant and her family during Mrs. Grant’s final weeks. Mrs. Grant passed peacefully at home in Canton as she wished.

A Celebration of Life Service is planned for March 5, 2024 at 11:00 am. The family will gather with friends at Roswell United Methodist Church, Roswell, Georgia to celebrate Gwen’s heavenly homecoming and her earthly birthday.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts and donations may be made to the American Brain Tumor Association, Glioblastoma Foundation or a charity of your choosing.

Obituary Donna Leigh Grant

OBITUARY

Donna Leigh Grant

February 27, 1926 – April 16, 2020

Donna Leigh Browne Grant

Donna Grant, age 94, of Gainesville, Georgia, went home to be with the Lord on Thursday, April 16, 2020. Mrs. Grant was born on February 27, 1926, in Long Beach, California, to the late Hart and Arlene Browne. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her sister, Jean Arlene Browne Lee, and her loving husband of 51 years, Robert “Bob” Dale Grant.

Mr. and Mrs. Grant were married in Glendora, California, on March 8, 1947, and began their family in Covina, California. Her husband was transferred to Roswell, Georgia, in 1966, where Mrs. Grant taught preschool at First Baptist Church, Roswell. After his retirement, Mr. and Mrs. Grant moved to Gainesville, Georgia in 1983.

Mrs. Grant was a member of First Baptist Church, Gainesville, where she continued her calling to teach. After 51 years, she officially retired and was honored and recognized by the community as Master Teacher. Throughout her years at First Baptist Preschool, hundreds of children were blessed by her love and passion for teaching. She never forgot her students and remembered them long after they passed through her care. She was a loving and dedicated wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and aunt. She loved her family and was always sharing her photos with everyone. She devoted her life to her family.

Mrs. Grant leaves behind her son and daughter-in-law, Gary and Gwen Grant, of Canton, Georgia; Son, Larry Grant of Knightdale, North Carolina; Daughter and son-in-law Mary and Bradley Dunagan, of Gainesville, Georgia; Grandchildren, Shannon (James) Doppelheuer of Snellville, Georgia; Lori (Andrew) Martin of Charlotte, North Carolina; Robert (Mandy) Grant of Canton, Georgia; Ryan (Katie) Grant of Johns Creek, Georgia; Leah (Britt) Hulsey of Murrayville, Georgia; Lindsey (Steven) McDowell of Rome, Georgia; Tyler (Amanda) Dunagan of Jacksonville, Florida; Brian Grant of Bloomington, Indiana; Austin Grant of Trenton, Tennessee. Her most cherished blessings and legacy were her 19 great-grandchildren. Mrs. Grant’s niece, Cheryl (Bruce) Stewart of Riverside, California, was loved as a second daughter.

The family would like to thank Gardens of Gainesville Assisted Living in Gainesville, Georgia, Woodland Ridge Assisted Living in Smyrna, Georgia, and Tapestry Hospice for their love and care they showed to Mrs. Grant and her family.

A Celebration of Life Service will be planned at First Baptist Church Gainesville, Georgia, at a later date when all her family and friends can gather together. A private graveside service will follow in Roswell, Georgia, where she will be laid to rest beside her beloved husband. (Roswell Funeral Home).

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts and donations may be made to First Baptist Church Day School, 751 Green Street, Gainesville, Georgia, 30501.

She Was There For Everything by Leah Dunagan Hulsey

I have spent most of the day going through pictures, I think it was my way of soaking in every last moment of Grandma. The pictures affirmed what I already knew...she was there for everything! From science fair trophies in 5th grade, to graduations, to weddings, to birth of our babies, even getting to celebrate with my youngest turning 10, and everything in between. She was right by my side and I will cherish those many memories forever. She loved her family big and impacted my life and many more, more than she will ever know! Although we are heartbroken she is no longer physically with us, we know she is in a better place and her reunion last night with Grandpa and our Lord was a beautiful moment for sure! Pray for my mama and our family, for not being able to be together during this time is the hardest part.

Grandma's Stories by Lindsey Dunagan McDowell

My last grandparent is gone. There's a shift now. I'm officially in the middle. I am mother and I am daughter, but no longer granddaughter.

Grandma had told me stories of growing up in California and how her mom, Arlene Browne, would take her and her little sister to a horse track to watch the horses race. One race, her mom bet on a horse named Sweet Arlene and she won first place.

She told me about meeting a handsome football player at the school diner. Then Pearl Harbor was bombed. She told me about how her father would have to walk the streets to make sure the town was following the new curfew rules and how everything would be dark once the sun set. Lights that filled Monterey Bay...now completely dark. That horse track near her home no longer hosted races, it became a Japanese Concentration camp. When school started back, her Japanese American class mates were gone with no explanations. And that handsome football player now wore a uniform and would be gone for years.

As life continued during the war, she became a young woman and was even engaged twice, calling off both engagements. She laughed and admitted to me that the second engagement was more about her enjoyment of having a diamond ring on her finger. She told me about the evening when a current boyfriend was bringing her home after a date. He walked her inside and just sitting on the kitchen counter, with a grin on his face, was that handsome soldier. She said she remembers screaming and forgetting every thing else, including that poor fellow who was clearly no longer a boyfriend. She said they stayed in that kitchen and talked for hours. That soldier's sister had known these two would marry and had kept a ring while he was away at war. After years of jumping out of planes into enemy territory, storming foreign shores and fighting in the trenches, he did indeed return. They married a year later and she walked down the aisle in a dress made with part of his parachute.

They would live with her parents, while he built their first home.
It wasn't long before she was pregnant. While largely pregnant, she had decided she didn't like the color of her new kitchen and was set on doing something about it herself. While climbing a step stool to paint, her water broke.
A surprise awaited them at the hospital. She delivered not one son, but two. There was some shock and fainting and then some rallying of friends and family to gather two of everything. Her twin sons were brought home to a two-colored kitchen. Eleven years later, a surprise daughter. And her family was complete.

A move across the country and a new life in Georgia.
Here's where my own story intertwines with hers. Her presence is woven into every single part of my life.

Every holiday or special occasion, she was there. But also everything in between. When we would spend the night at her house, she would wake us up singing, "rise and shine and give God the glory, glory..." She would let me mix all the different types of cereal she had and eat them out of a mixing bowl for breakfast. We got to eat macaroni and cheese for lunch on TV trays while watching Nickelodeon. Afternoons spent at her neighborhood pool where she would pack Mondo squirt drinks that were gone in 2 sips but felt like such a luxury. And when she would take us to see a movie in the theater, in a big straw purse she would sneak baggies of Grandpa's homemade popcorn because it was way better then what you could buy there. There were countless days spent on Grandpa's pontoon boat, wrapped up in her arms to stay warm on the ride back to their dock. She baked me oatmeal raisin cookies before every camp or trip I went on and wrote me letters while I was gone. And it wasn't officially my birthday until she called and sang to me.

I saw her and my grandfather love each other well. Service, grace and laughter filled their marriage and their home. I watched her become a widow too soon, but carry on with strength and continue to hold family first. My entire life was witness to her teaching and serving and putting others first.
I got to see her fall in love with the man I married and celebrate our wedding. She got to meet and hold all of my daughters, which I am eternally grateful for.

My knowledge of her, is of being my Grandma Grant. But the glimpses of stories and pictures into her life before that title, have always intrigued me. I know, as with all of humanity, her life was filled with valleys and dark nights and struggles and pain and heartbreak. I know she didn't like to focus on those things. I know she wasn't perfect but I know she knew how to love people. I know that there is no way for me to grasp all of the life she lived in her 94 years. But I will forever hold dear the knowledge that 53 days before her last breath earth side, she was surrounded by her children and grandchildren and great grandchildren while we celebrated her birthday. I got to watch her while she sat holding her daughter's daughter's daughter and prayed that I will one day have a chance to know what that feels like.

A life well lived indeed.

 Click link for video

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148

Donna Leigh Browne Grant 1926 -2020

My mother, Donna Grant, age 94, went home to be with the Lord on Thursday, April 16, 2020. She was born on February 27, 1926, in Long Beach, California, to Hart and Arlene Browne. She had one sister, Jean Arlene Browne Lee.
She fell in love with the love of her life, Robert (Bob) Dale Grant, a young, handsome American soldier returning from World War II. Her wedding dress was made from Bob's silk parachute and they married in Glendora, California, on March 8, 1947. They built their first home in Covina, California, where soon they started a family. Bob and Donna Grant were married for 51 years. Bob died on September 14, 1998.

While living in Covina they had three children, Gary Leigh Grant b. 2 April 1948, Larry Robert Grant b. 2 April 1948, and Mary Arlene Grant(me) b. 12 January 1959. My dad worked with Bekins Moving and Storage Company and in 1966 was transferred to Atlanta, Ga, to open up a Bekins office. At the time of the move I was only 7 and my brothers were much older and both begin their freshman year of college at the University of Georgia, in Athens, GA. Dad bought a house in Roswell, GA, a suburb, north of Atlanta. While I was in school my mother started teaching at the First Baptist Church of Roswell Preschool.

Gary Leigh Grant m. Gwen Ann Brittain 12 June 1970. 
Chidren: Lori Ann Grant b 17 Jan 1975.
Robert (Robby) Allan Grant b. 4 July 1976.
Ryan Leigh Grant b. 14 Dec 1978.

Larry Robert Grant m. Sonya West  25 Jan 1969, m. Patte Hart
Chidren: Shannon Lynn Grant b. 14 Aug 1969(Sonya)
Brian Grant b. , Austin Grant b. 21 Apr 1992(Patte)

Mary Arlene Grant m. William Bradley Dunagan 10 June 1978.
Chidren: Leah Maeve Dunagan b. 13 Aug 1981.
Lindsey Marie Dunagan b. 31 Aug 1983.
Tyler Grant Dunagan b. 19 Mar 1986.


My dad retired from Bekins in 1984, after 30 plus years with the company. Mom and Dad sold their place in Roswell, the home I grew up in, and moved to Gainesville to be near my family. They lived with Brad and me before they bought a little cottage in a gated lake community called "Quiet Place in the Woods" where dad could keep his beloved pontoon boat.

It wasn't long before Donna was teaching school again. This time at the First Baptist Church of Gainesville. She continued teaching even after dad died, and well into her 80s. She was an amazing teacher and was recognized as "Master Teacher" when she retired after teaching for 51 years.

Throughout her 51 years of teaching, hundreds of children were blessed by her love and passion for teaching. She never forgot her students and remembered them long after they passed through her care. She was a loving and dedicated wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and aunt. She loved her family and was always sharing her photos with everyone. She devoted her life to her family.

Bob and Donna Grant have left a beautiful legacy to pass on to their children, 9 grandchildren and 19 great grandchildren.

Robert Dale Grant 1926-1998

Robert Dale Grant was born February 14, 1926, in Covina, Los Angeles, CA, and he died in Gainesville, Ga, September 14, 1998, and is buried in Roswell, GA. He was my father and grandfather to nine grandchildren who called him "Gapi."

Bob Grant, as he was called, married my mother, Donna Leigh Browne March 8, 1947, in Covina, CA, and they had the following children:

Gary Leigh Grant

Larry Robert Grant

Mary Arlene Grant

(L-R) Gary Grant, Donna Grant, Larry Grant, Mary Grant (Dec. 2010)

There is not a lot known about my father's family so I have tried to piece as much information together from the Federal Census Data and other sources that I could find.

My dad came from a large family. His father was Myron Gordon Grant born February 10, 1883 in Wisconsin. He married my grandmother, Adelaine May Addie Netzley (1883-1972) also of Wisconsin. They had the following children:

Donald Bert Grant 1905-1980

Ruby Agnes Grant 1906-1990

Pearl Eva Grant 1907-1985

Florence Grant 1910-

Raymond Grant

Elsie Grant

James Grant (died at age 3 of diphtheria)

Robert Dale Grant 1926-1998 (cause of death was emphysema\COPD)

According to the 1910 Federal Census, Myron Gordon Grant was 27 years old and living in Steven Point Ward 1, Portage, Wisconsin, and was married to Addie Grant. They had four children by 1910 and Myron's sister, May C. Grant (age 16) also lived with her brother's young family. The next census in 1920 shows Myron Gordon Grant had moved his family to Glendora, Los Angeles, CA, and the family had grown by three more children. Apparently, the move to California took place before 1920 because I found were Myron Grant had registered for the WWI draft in Los Angeles County, CA, in 1918. On the draft registration, it showed that he was married to Addie Grant and his left hand was missing a thumb which apparently was enough to keep him from serving in the military.

When the 1930 Federal Census came around Myron and Addie Grant were living in Charter Oaks, Los Angeles, CA, and their youngest child, Robert Dale Grant was almost five years old (4-11/12). The very next year, 1931, Myron Gordon Grant died from tuberculosis.

I found in the 1900 census Myron Grant's parents, Frank Gordie Grant (1853-1910) and Eveline Kickland (1857-1928) were living in Linwood, Portage, Wisconsin, with the following listed in the household:

Frederick L. Grant (age 18)

Myron G. Grant (age 17)

Jessie A. Grant (age 11)

Margaret Grant (age 7)

Vernice Grant (age 3)

Based on what I know Frank Gordie Grant and Eveline Kickland Grant lived out their days and are buried in Portage, Wisconsin. So far, I have found no information on who their parents were but I am still looking.

Their grandson, my father, Robert Dale Grant was a veteran of WWII (Master Sergeant), a wonderful father, a good provider for his family, and a person with a kind and gentle spirit. He loved the great outdoors, boating, hunting and fishing. He loved being on the water. Everybody loved Bob! A day does not pass without me missing him.

Mary Arlene Grant Dunagan

children, grandchildren and great grandchildren of Robert Dale Grant

MUMS

by Mary Arlene Grant Dunagan

Mums, as I knew her, was my mother's mother, my maternal grandmother. She was born Arlene Vincent Normile to William Toby Normile and Edna Vincent Normile on February 14, 1903. She was born in Venango County, PA, lived most of her life in Oregon and California, died August 10, 1987, in Roswell, Fulton County, GA.

Her father, William Toby Normile was born January 11, 1883, in Canada as was his father Patrick Normile (b. 1854). His grandfather, however, was born in Ireland. Patrick Normile married Nettie Toby in 1877, and according to the 1900 census they had four children living with them, Mabel (age 21), William Toby (age 17), Hattie (age 14), and Norman (age 2). Nettie Toby Normile's father was William Toby (b. 1826 in NY), married Jane Ann Mason and were living in Kingsley Forest, PA, in 1870, with the following children: Uius, Kate, Nettie, and Hattie

Mums' mother, Edna Vincent Normile was born November 27, 1882, in PA, to Henry Vincent (b. 1846) and Catherine Ramsdale (b. 3 Nov 1847, Yorkshire, England, d. 24 Dec 1924). According to the 1900 census, the following children were living in the Vincent household: Maud F., Nellie, Robert R., Catherine, Edna, Henry E., Mariam, and Jessie Vincent.

William Toby Normile, my great grandfather, worked as a civil engineer on mostly tunnel projects through out the country in places like New York, San Francisco, CA, Oregon, and Alaska. And according to my mother, he also worked for a period in China on some construction projects there and later became an aviator or what she called a bush pilot who flew one of the first mail air routes from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska. The 1930 census shows William Normile and Edna Vincent Normile living in Long Beach, CA, and his occupation listed was "aviator."

This union produced one child who became my Mums, Arlene Vincent Normile. She married Hart Leigh Browne (b. 13 Jan 1895). They were married June 16, 1925, at the Mission Inn in Riverside, CA.

Hart Leigh Browne, my grandfather, was a veteran of WWI and was born in Little Vally, NY, raised by his mother, Alma (Ahmo) Covert Browne (b. 1875) divorced when Hart(only child) was young. The 1910 census showed Hart Leigh Browne living with his mother, grandmother Sybill J. MacMillan(widowed) and his great grandmother Jane A. MacMillan(also widowed).

The 1930 census shows Hart L. Browne and Arlene Vincent Normile Browne living in Long Beach, CA and they had the following children:

Donna Leigh Browne (my mother) (b. 26 Feb 1926, d. 16 Apr 2020)

Jean Arlene Browne (b. 7 Jan 1930, d. 15 Feb 1991)

Arlene Vincent Normile Browne divorced Hart Browne and married Charles Pentolino on May 19, 1956, in Clark County, Nevada. I remember I called him Penny and he owned a dance studio and taught dance. Mums loved to dance but she mostly ran the office at the studio. I found that Charles Pentolino was born April 11, 1925, in Ohio, which makes Mums 22 years his senior. Way to go Mums! They divorced in 1974 or 1977(divorce record list both years) and neither ever remarried. Penny died June 20, 1980 in San Diego, CA and Mums lived in Hemet, CA, up until a few years before her death when she moved in with my mom and dad in Roswell, GA. She died August 10, 1987.

Daughter Jean Arlene Browne wedding with sister Donna and Mums in attendance (standing).
(Wedding date 10 Nov 1949, to Thomas C Coombs). Older sister Donna, my mother, had married two years earlier on 8 Mar 1947, to Robert D Grant.  I don't know much about the life of my mom's sister Jean other than the fact she had a beautiful singing voice apparently. She sang the National Anthem at the 1959 World Series game with Dodgers vs Cubs.