Remembering Mrs. Mary Jane Whitley Gray of Wadesboro High School & Bowman High School
Remembering Mrs. Mary Jane Whitley Gray; Hoping that my high school classmates can remember which grade we had Mrs. Gray. I cannot remember if she was my science teacher in 9th grade at Anson Junior High School during the 1974/1975 school term or the 10th grade at Bowman Senior High School during the 1975/1976 school term.
On Tuesday, February 15, 2022, Mrs. Mary Jane Whitley Gray age 89, transferred from the church militant to the church triumphant, at her home with her daughters and close friends at her bedside. Mrs. Gray was born December 15, 1932, in Stanly County, NC and was a daughter of the late Ernest Tillmon Whitley and the late Eunice Jelean Hudson Whitley. She was a graduate of Aquadale High School in 1951 and received a Bachelor of Education from Woman’s College in Greensboro, which is now the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Quite possibly Mrs. Gray’s first teaching position was in 1955 at Wadesboro High School copied from the 1955 Wadesboro High School Yearbook is a photo of Miss Mary Jane Whitley on the left along with Mrs. Harold Johnson on the right. Mrs. Gray taught Home Economics in the Anson County School System and retired as a science teacher with 37 years of service.
On November 6, 1955 at First Baptist Church on Lee Avenue in Wadesboro, Miss Mary Jane Whitley married Mr. Donald Bennett Gray. They were married for 27 years, until Mr. Gray passed away on November 13, 1982 at the age of 54. Mr. Gray was a son of Clayton Bryan Gray and Sue Kate Pope Gray of Wadesboro.
Mrs. Gray was a long-time and faithful member of First United Methodist Church, Wadesboro. She served in many capacities at First Church which includes, former Sunday School teacher, member of the administrative board, member of the handbell choir, officer and member of the United Methodist Women, chaired work area on education and youth, coordinated Disciple training, maintained the church bulletin boards, member of the No Boundaries Travel Group and other various committees and areas of service.
At the time of her passing, Mrs. Gray was survived by her 2 daughters and their families, 1 brother and 1 sister. Her final resting place was Anson Memorial Park.
Posted Jul 6, 2025, 9:12 PM UTC