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OBITUARIES
Dr. Charles Johnson, Duke Medical School Pioneer, Dies at 94
Written by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Dr. Charles Johnson, the first Black faculty member in the Duke University School of Medicine and first Black physician on the university faculty, has died. He was 94. A news release from the school says Johnson died Wednesday. A cause...
John Sanders, Former UNC School of Government Director, Dies at 94
John Sanders, the former director of the UNC School of Government and a key player in the creation of the University of North Carolina System, died on Wednesday, September 22. He was 94 years old. The UNC School of Government shared a release announcing the passing of...
Tim Carless, Local Musician, Dies; GoFundMe Created to Support Family
A GoFundMe site has been established to support the family of local musician Tim Carless, who passed away earlier this month.
Chapel Hill Honors ‘Community Treasure’ Edith Wiggins Following Death
To begin its meeting on Wednesday, the Chapel Hill Town Council held a moment of silence for long-time Chapel Hill community member Edith Wiggins, who died on Sunday, April 4. Wiggins, who retired from the council in 2005, lived in the town for decades and helped...
Chapel Hill ‘Community Treasure,’ RSVVP Founder Irene Briggaman Dies
Editor's Note: An original version of the article incorrectly listed Briggaman's age as 83 years old. The story has since been updated. Irene Briggaman, who spent decades partnering with local businesses to fundraise for hunger relief programs, recently passed away,...
Marc Basnight, Longest Serving NC Senate Leader, Dies at 73
Former state Sen. Marc Basnight, a Democrat from North Carolina’s barrier islands who became one of North Carolina’s most powerful contemporary political leaders while serving a record 18 years as Senate leader, died Monday. He was 73. Basnight, who was ill for years...
Robert Seymour, Civil Rights Activist and Chapel Hill Pastor, Dies at 95
Local pastor and longtime civil rights activist Rev. Robert Seymour has died at age 95. Seymour became the first pastor at Chapel Hill’s Binkley Memorial Baptist Church in 1959. During the 1960s, he fought for racial integration of both his church and the wider...
Euzelle Smith, Namesake of Chapel Hill Middle School, Dies at 101
A pillar in the Chapel Hill community and local education system recently passed away after a century of life. Euzelle P. Smith died on Saturday, September 19, according to the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools system. She was 101 years old. Smith and her husband,...
Randall Kenan Dies: Author Depicted Black, Gay Life in Prose
Randall Kenan, an author whose stories explored the experience of being Black and gay in the American South, has died. He was 57. The University of North Carolina, where Kenan taught as an English professor, confirmed his death on Saturday. A cause was not immediately...
Renowned Author and Chapel Hill Resident Elizabeth Spencer Dies at 98
Elizabeth Spencer, a grande dame of Southern literature who bravely navigated between the Jim Crow past and open-ended present in her novels and stories including the celebrated novella “Light In the Piazza,” has died at 98. Spencer, who sometimes went by her married...
Memorial for Longtime East Chapel Hill High Principal Planned for Saturday
A memorial service is scheduled for Saturday to remember the life of a longtime East Chapel Hill High School principal who recently died. Dave Thaden began his career in Chapel Hill – Carrboro City Schools as an English teacher at Guy B. Phillips Junior High School...
Former Orange County Sheriff Remembered for Revitalizing Department
Editor's Note: Beth Velliquette was a longtime reporter for the Herald-Sun who wrote this piece for the family of Lindy Pendergrass. Pendergrass died earlier this month. He served as Orange County Sheriff for more than 30 years before retiring in 2014. This post is...
Former Orange County Sheriff Dies
Former Orange County Sheriff Lindy Pendergrass has died. The sheriff's office posted a message about Pendergrass' death on the office's Facebook page. Pendergrass was sheriff in Orange County for more than 30 years before retiring in 2014. Sunday's message from the...
Former Chapel Hill Town Council Member Lee Pavao Dies
Former Chapel Hill Town Council member Lee Pavao has died, according to his family. Pavao was an advertising executive who retired to Chapel Hill in 1988. He went on to serve two terms on the Chapel Hill Town Council and ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2001. Pavao...
Maple View Farm Mourning Death of ‘Farmer Bob’
Maple View Farm Ice Cream co-founder Bob Nutter has died. “Farmer Bob” as he was lovingly called died on Friday, his obituary said. The Nutter family moved its farming operation from Maine to Hillsborough in 1963 and has grown into a local staple with Maple View Farm...
Former UNC School of Medicine Dean Dies
Dr. Stuart Bondurant, who served as the dean of the UNC School of Medicine for 15 years, died on Saturday, May 26. Bondurant’s obituary said his death came after a brief illness. Bondurant served as the dean of the Medical School from 1979 to 1994, according to the...
Chapel Hill Restaurant Legend ‘Mama Dip’ Dies
Mildred Council, better known across Chapel Hill and North Carolina as Mama Dip, died on Sunday, community members confirmed to WCHL Monday morning. WRAL first reported Council's death on Monday citing her daughter. Council was a legend in the restaurant community in...
John Ehle, Writer, Founder of UNC School of the Arts Dies
John Ehle, an award-winning writer who helped develop what is now the UNC School of the Arts, has died. He was 92. A statement from school Chancellor Lindsay Bierman said Ehle died Saturday at his Winston-Salem home with his wife, actress Rosemary Harris, and daughter...
UNC Professor Emeritus, Former Chapel Hill Town Council Member Dies
A former UNC professor and Chapel Hill Town Council member has died. David Godschalk passed away on January 27, according to a post on the UNC Department of City and Regional Planning’s Facebook page. Godschalk was affiliated with the university for nearly 40 years,...
Longtime Carrboro Business Owner Passes Away -Updated with Memorial Service Information
Scott Bertram, who started Carrboro's Townsend Bertram & Company along with Audrey Townsend in 1988, passed away last Friday. A post from their daughter on the company's website says that Bertram passed away "at sunrise with a smile on his face." The business was...
