Mary Miot Bruce

Lenoir, NC- Mrs. Mary Miot Buys Bruce, age 97 of Lenoir, died Wednesday, November 5, 2009 at the Shaire Center of Lenoir. Mrs. Bruce was born in Belhaven, NC, Hyde County in 1912, daughter of the late William Anders and Hazel Old Buys and wife of the late Hamilton Louden Bruce, to whom she married in 1942. Her western NC friends often called her the ?belle of Belhaven.? Other than her parents and husband, she was preceded in death by one daughter, Sarah Bruce Whalen, her sister, Adelaide Buys McCarthy and brother, William O. Buys. Mrs. Bruce graduated from the Davenport College of Lenoir in 1930. Until her death, she was the oldest living member of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church. She and her husband Hamilton were instrumental in the establishment of the church in the early 1940?s. She and Mr. Bruce started Hammary Furniture in 1943, the company name was a combination of their names; Hamilton (Ham) and Mary. She served as Secretary of the Corporation until the sale of the company in 1971. Mrs. Bruce started her career as a secretary to the president of Kent Coffey. She and Hamilton designed and built Kenham Lodge, now Caldwell House, for lodging and entertaining during the annual furniture markets. She was a gracious hostess, noted for her creative cooking and entertaining. She was an avid reader and traveler. Mrs. Bruce won several awards for her poetry and could recite hundreds of poems and songs from memory. She was one of the founding members of the Lenoir Service League and a member of the Daughter?s of the Confederacy. She loved to swim in the waters of North Carolina, from the Pamlico Sound to Wilson?s Creek. Surviving are three daughters, Katherine (Mrs. Thomas G.) Bruce Terrell of Lenoir; Mary Hamilton (Mrs. Cyril Joseph) Bruce Worm of Seattle, WA; Elisabeth (Mrs. David Cooper) Bruce Wall of Lenoir; one niece, Anne (Mrs. Rick) Bartlett of Lenoir; 13 Grandchildren; 14 Great-Grandchildren and 2 Great-Great-Grandchildren. A Funeral Mass for Mrs. Bruce will be held 3:00 PM Sunday, November 8, 2009 at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church with Reverend Julio C. Domingus officiating. Burial will follow in Belleview Cemetery. The family will receive friends on Sunday from 2:00 until 3:00 PM, one hour prior to the service in the Parrish Hall of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church. The family respectfully requests memorials be made to St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, 328-B Woodsway Lane, NW, Lenoir, NC 28645 or to Caldwell Hospice and Palliative Care, 902 Kirkwood Street, Lenoir, NC 28645. PDF Printable Version