Facts
Born: July 31, 1922
Death: January 20, 2010
In Memoriam of Lois Thomas Dennington
Lois Thomas Dennington
July 31, 1922 - January 20, 2010
DERMOTT Lois Thomas Dennington, loving wife, mother, daughter, sister, and grandmother, was called home to heaven on Wednesday, January 20, 2010, while at the Hospice Home Care Inpatient Center in Little Rock, Arkansas. Her kindness, patience, understanding, and unconditional love will be sorely missed by those left behind.
Lois was born July 31, 1922, in rural Lincoln County, Arkansas, to Henry W. and Lois B. Thomas. She was the baby of the couple’s three children, and since she was named for her mother, Lois was affectionately called “Baby Lo.”
“Baby Lo” was the apple of her mother’s eye until the day she took a bite out of all the apples in the fruit bowl on her mother’s dining room table. When her mother demanded to know who the culprit was, “Baby Lo” ran under the house and refused to come out. That was probably the first and last time Lois ever got in trouble with her mother, because according to Lois, her mother made a believer of her that day.
When Lois and her brother and sister rode the bus to school from Tarry to Star City during the cold winter months of the late 1920’s and 1930’s, their mother gave them hot, hard boiled eggs to hold in their hands to keep them warm. Those were hard times.
Lois persevered through those bus rides and graduated from high school and went to college in Conway at what was then Arkansas State Teacher’s College (UCA today). She majored in home economics. As part of her home economics studies, she had to serve dinner to the faculty of home economics professors. Lois was a wonderful cook, but that night, the graham cracker crust on her cherry fluff pie broke into a hundred pieces. Always quick-thinking and creative, Lois served her broken pie as pudding instead, and the professors loved it.
After graduation, Lois moved to Dermott, where she began her teaching career. She taught there for a number of years until she married and moved to Memphis and went to work for Creekmore Cotton Co. while her husband completed dental school.
The couple returned to Dermott and had two children, Tom and Judy. Lois was active in the Dermott United Methodist Church, teaching Sunday school and helping with Bible school. She hosted a Bible study in her home for many years. Lois also helped with the Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts. She was a member of Delta Kappa Gamma, the Current Topic Club, and the D.A.R. No matter how busy she was, Lois always had time for her children and put their needs ahead of her own. Her children were the best of her.
During the 1960’s, Lois returned to teaching and earned a master’s degree in counseling from Delta State University in Cleveland, MS. This degree was earned during summers and on weekends. Lois was not a stranger to hard work having put in long hours at her parents’ country store when she was just a girl.
Lois became Dermott High School’s counselor and remained so until her retirement. She worked tirelessly to help students receive scholarships and enter colleges/universities. She even tutored students. Lois was a patient, caring, dedicated teacher.
In 1973, Lois married R. H. “Butch” Dennington of Dermott. They had many long and happy years together, enjoying children, grandchildren, and following the Razorbacks.
After retirement, Lois did not relocate herself to the rocking chair. She kept active. She had become Nana and was a wonderful grandmother who never minded losing at Old Maid or dominoes. Lois’ grandchildren thought their Nana made the best cheesecake and homemade rolls in the world. In addition to enjoying her grandchildren, she also helped care for her ailing mother who lived to the ripe old age of 102.
Lois never complained about anything that happened to her. She was always ready to help someone who needed her without ever expecting anything in return. She worked hard her whole life—at her parents’ store, chopping cotton on her parents’ farm, teaching school, caring for an aging parent, tending to her ailing husband—but she never saw her glass half empty. Her glass was always half full.
Lois was preceded in death by her parents; her brother, Dr. H. W. Thomas of Dermott; her sister, Juanita Parker of Tarry; and her beloved husband, R. H. Dennington of Dermott.
She is survived by her son, Thomas H. Grumbles (Rita), of Greenbrier and her daughter, Judith Grumbles Phillips (Phil), of Springdale; two step-children, Lephiew Dennington (Anne) of Dermott and Janet Moss (Rusty) of Dermott. Also, surviving are four grandchildren: Andy Grumbles (Charlotte Ann) of Maumelle, Rebecca Barnard (Kenneth) of Greenbrier, Rhett Lashlee (Lauren) of Auburn, AL, and Robin Grumbles of Conway; six step-grandchildren: Brooke Johnston (Monte) of Springdale, Anne Archer Dennington of Atlanta, GA, Dr. Lephiew Dennington, Jr. (Alison) of Little Rock, Clayton Dennington of Dermott, Dennington Moss (Allison) of Greenville, MS, and Swan B. Moss III (Gay) of Texarkana. TX. Lois is also survived by five loving great-grandsons: Ryan, Matthew, and Jackson Barnard of Greenbrier and Drew and Hunter Grumbles of Maumelle; nine step-great-grandchildren: Jorja, Jessi, Jinger, and Joslin Johnston of Springdale; Holland Dennington of Little Rock; Landers, Ella and Hadley Moss of Greenville, MS; and Burrus and Gayble Moss of Texarkana, TX. She is also survived by her brother-in law, Woody Parker, of Tarry and her sister-in-law, Cissy Thomas, of Starkville, MS.
Lois was blessed to have had wonderful caregivers who made her life meaningful and comfortable during her long illness. Thanks to Joan Head, Martha Woods, Bessie Jones, Becky Nuckles, Stephanie Kimble and Jessica Davis.
The family would also like to thank Hospice Home Care Inpatient Center in Little Rock for their kind and loving treatment of Lois so that her last days were filled with compassion and meaning.
Pallbearers are Andy Grumbles, Rhett Lashlee, Clayton Dennington, Dennington Moss, Kenneth Barnard, Lephiew Dennington, Jr., Monte Johnston, and Swan B. Moss III.
The family will be at her home at 608 West Speedway in Dermott on Friday afternoon and evening.
Funeral services will be held at the Dermott United Methodist Church in Dermott, Arkansas, at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, January 23, 2010. Visitation will at the church beginning at 9:30 a.m. and ending at 11:00 a.m. preceding the service. Burial will be at Graceland Cemetery in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, at 3:00 p.m.
Donations may be made to the Dermott United Methodist Church, 100 North Main, Dermott, AR 71638 or the charity of your choice.
Arrangements were made by Griffin Funeral Service of Dermott.
“A Mother holds her children’s hands for a while…….their hearts forever.”
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