Beth Griffin Okun died Sunday after a long, full and feisty life. Born in 1914 and raised in the small town of Blooming Grove, Texas, Beth graduated from North Texas State Teachers College and received a master's degree in social work from the University of Pittsburg. She met her husband, Dan, in New Orleans where she was working for the USO and he was in the Army. They moved to Chapel Hill in 1952, where they were active members of the community for over 55 years.

Beth taught special education at the Frank Porter Graham Elementary School in Chapel Hill; she was the first white teacher in a black elementary school in the then-segregated school system. She helped found, with friends Charlotte Adams and Tan Schwab, the Dispute Settlement Center of Orange County. She was a talented dancer, dance teacher and caller, and an accomplished pianist, accordion-player, cook and seamstress. She particularly loved, among other things, the mountains and people of Madison County, fine food, Italian art, Roy Campenella, Sam Perkins, her friends and family, and especially her two grandsons.

Beth is survived by her children, Mike and Tema, and her grandchildren Will and Joedan. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Carol Woods Employee Appreciation Fund in honor of the considerate and thoughtful care that Beth received for many years from the Health Center staff - 750 Weaver Dairy Road, Chapel Hill, NC 27514. The family will receive friends at the home of Mike Okun in Carrboro on Sunday, Feb. 22 from 3 to 5 p.m.

Ann Miller Stone

Ann Miller Stone of Waxhaw, N.C., died peacefully Thursday at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte following an extended illness.

A memorial service to celebrate her life will be held at a place and time yet to be determined and will be announced by Davis Funeral Home of Monroe.

Mrs. Stone was born in Lumberton on Jan. 25, 1945, a daughter of Estamae Miller Johnson and the late Samuel Kesler Johnson. She was a homemaker.

Survivors include her husband, John Franklin Stone of the home; a son, John (Chris) Stone and wife, Michelle, of Loveland, Col.; a daughter, Amanda Stone of Ft. Collins, Colo.; two grandchildren, Chloe Dundas and Brandan Stone, both of Loveland, Col.; her mother, Estamae Miller Johnson of Chapel Hill; a sister, Jennifer Sarmiento and husband, Jaime, of Rockville, Md.; and a niece, Ana Sarmiento of Rockville, Md.

Ann was a devoted wife, dedicated mother, loving 'memama' for our grandchildren and "Miss Ann" to so many children of all ages. She recently spoke of her last Christmas with our children and grandchildren in olorado as her "best ever." She was warm, caring, loving ...a classy lady. In her own words, "what a great life I've had." Lastly, she would want others to know her passion as a registered organ donor; however her illness disallows this taking place.

Memorial donations may be made to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society; Western North Carolina Chapter; 5950 Fairview Road; Suite 250; Charlotte, NC 28210.

www.davisfuneralservice.com.

John Eric Wilson

John Eric Wilson, 89, died Thursday at his home in Chapel Hill.

He was born Dec. 13, 1919, in Champaign, Ill. to William Courtney and Marie Lytle Wilson. The family subsequently lived in Chicago.

He graduated from University of Chicago in 1941 (B.S.), from the University of Illinois in 1944 (M.S. in organic chemistry) and Cornell University Medical College in NYC (Ph.D. in biochemistry). He remained there as an assistant in biochemistry until 1948 when he moved to Chapel Hill to take up a position at the UNC School of Medicine.

On June 7, 1947 he married Marion Ruth Heaton of New York City who survives him. They have three sons still living in North Carolina: Kenneth Heaton Wilson and his wife, Joanne Peebles Wilson, of Chapel Hill; Douglas Courtney Wilson and his wife, Betsy Kraus, of Pittsboro; and Richard Mosher Wilson and his wife, Carol Thomson Wilson, of Charlotte.

Surviving him also are 10 grandchildren: Karen Marie Wilson Frazier and her husband Charles Alan Frazier, Nora Marion Wilson Dennis and her husband, Paul Dennis, both of Durham; Courtney Peebles Wilson and Sarah Mosher Wilson of Chapel Hill; Erica Flanders Wilson and Wendell Kraus Wilson of Pittsboro; Kristen Elizabeth Wilson, of Cambridge, Boston; and Laura Ann Wilson, Griffin Mosher Wilson and Caroline Ruth Wilson of Charlotte. His sister, Opal Wilson Broner of Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., also survives him.

Dedicated to the preservation of natural resources, he loved bird watching and plants and worked to conserve land in rural Orange County. He was a devoted UNC basketball fan, attending their games as long as he was able. He liked to play tennis and followed the national and international tournaments on television.

A memorial service will be held at 4 p.m. today at the United Church of Chapel Hill, 1321 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Chapel Hill, NC, 27514. Memorial contributions may be made to the Triangle Land Conservancy, (1101 Haynes Street, Suite 205, Raleigh, NC 27604-1455, www.triangleland.org.)