Margaret Bolden

Margaret Bolden, 94, mother, wife, grandmother, and great-grandmother passed away peacefully at the hospital after a brief illness on September 23, 2021.

Mom was a young, energetic wife and mother of the 1950s. She was kind and tolerant. She loved her sometimes dysfunctional family very much. She worked hard to raise three kids and manage the household while working full-time outside the home for over 30 years. She had a lot of responsibilities, but all her free time was spent with her family. Mom was a devout and faithful Christian all her life and modeled those values for us.

Through the years, mom stayed fit and trim swimming, playing tennis, bowling, and gardening. Mom had a special knack for fashion, and she loved shopping. So, it’s no surprise that regardless of where she was going, she was always well groomed and dressed up. She loved decorating for the holidays, especially at Christmas. She always made our modest home feel cozy and welcoming year-round with an assortment of plants, knickknacks, and family photos.

Mom was a very good cook, and prepared all the classic southern dishes and breads, as well as Italian pastas and sauces. Grandma Jesse showed mom the miracle of cooking with an iron skillet and taught her the family biscuit and cornbread recipes. Grandpa William (Papa) visited us almost weekly and taught mom all the Italian recipes. Mom said Papa’s tomato sauce was a labor of love and so delicious because of his secret ingredient. She was right - the secret ingredient was the two of them in our small kitchen stirring the sauce, laughing, talking, spending time together.

Besides her family and friends, mom had two other favorite things in life - baseball and her pets. Baseball was her sport, and the Atlanta Braves were her team. Win or lose, she always cheered for the Braves. She loved cats and dogs and we always had one or three. She particularly loved her last little dog, Diablo, who kept her company faithfully for many years. Diablo had mom well trained to both spoil him completely and keep the treats coming all day.

Mom was loved and will be dearly missed by her children Nancy, William Lott, and Robert; grandsons David (Christie) and Lott (Kendall); great-grandson Elijah; brother- and sister-in-law Ronald and Felicia; nephews James (Denise), Ed, Dave, Bob; nieces Tamara, Rhonda (Jeff), Susan (Dan), Betsy (Scott); grandnieces Jesse, Angela; and grandnephew Tyler. She is predeceased by our dad Tom, her husband of 48 years, son-in-law Paul, brother-in-law Edwin, sister-in-law Patsy, niece Linda, mother Helen, father William, mother-in-law Jesse, and five siblings (Albert, Jean, Helen, Nora, Jenny).

A private celebration of life will be scheduled for a later date, due to the challenges of travel now, and the fact that her siblings and most of her friends beat her to the Pearly Gates. One of mom’s favorite sayings was, “Everyone wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die.” True enough, Mom. Rest in peace. We miss you and love you always.