Verda Mae Gunter, 85, of Gainesville, Missouri, passed away on December 11, 2010 at the Gainesville Healthcare Center. She was born on July 26, 1925 in Gainesville, the daughter of John Henry and Mearl (Hayes) Rose.

Both lifelong residents of Gainesville, Verda Mae Rose married Alva Gunter in 1946 in Yellville, Arkansas, and thereafter they worked hard alongside each other raising chickens, running a backhoe business, growing vegetables, and gardening. Alva and Verda Mae had two children, James Dale Gunter, in 1949, and Mary Elizabeth Gunter Barnes in 1965, later sending them both to college, where Dale graduated with a master's degree in Civil Engineering, and Mary a baccalaureate degree in Business. Alva passed away in January 2002, and is buried at Center Point Cemetery.

Verda Mae was a devoted charter member of the Full Gospel Tabernacle Church in Gainesville. Known far and wide for her delicious cooking, beautiful needlework, and sewing skills, Verda Mae was warm and loving to all who met her, always ready to lend a hand or a word of encouragement, and was never outside of arm's reach of her well-worn and cherished Holy Bible. A gentle and kind mother, grandmother, friend and encourager, Verda Mae's sumptious home-cooked food, trademark heirloom quilts, and delicately crafted lace tablecloths were her affectionate ministry of love.

Verda Mae is survived by her son James Dale (Mary Anne) of Greers Ferry, Arkansas, daughter Mary Elizabeth Barnes (Brian), of Olive Branch, Mississippi, and four grandchildren – John (Kelly) Gunter, of Little Rock, Arkansas, Bree and Blake Barnes, of Olive Branch, Misissippi, and Vanessa (Chris) Green-Pritchard of Little Rock, Arkansas, and a faithful young friend and helper Thea Jeffrey of Gainesville, as well as countless cherished lifelong friends in and around Gainesville.


Visitation will be on Tuesday evening, December 14, 2010 from 5:00-7:00 PM at the Clinkingbeard Funeral Home, Gainesville, Missouri. Funeral services will be held at 2:00 PM on Wednesday, December 15, 2010 in the Clinkingbeard Funeral Home Chapel, with Lowell Tregle officiating. Burial will be in the Center Point Cemetery, Gainesville.

Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in
the gates. (Proverbs 31:10).

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Full Gospel Tabernacle Church in Gainesville (http://www.ozarkcounty.net/churches.html), the American Cancer Society (https://www.cancer.org/involved/donate/donateonlinenow/index), or the Arthritis Foundation (http://www.arthritis.org/index.php).