Category: 1953

James “Jim” Carlton Eller, 92, of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, passed away on June 28, 2023. He went peacefully at his home with loved ones by his side.

Jim was born on January 6, 1931, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where he was a lifelong resident. He attended Summit School and went on to graduate high school from Woodberry Forest School. While at Woodberry, he gained the name “Shady” due to a funny story involving a paper airplane in class. He noted that some of the happiest times in his life were spent at Woodberry. His love and appreciation for his days there led him to become a devoted supporter of the school. Jim then graduated from Davidson College.

While in college, Jim met Doris McMillan Eller. She was the love of his life. They wed after he returned from serving in the Navy and they were married 67 wonderful years. They have one daughter, Elaine Eller Stephenson, who was his pride and joy. The three of them loved to travel together and made many wonderful memories as a family.

Jim was a retired commercial and investment real estate broker. For leisure, he was an avid skier and golfer, but his greatest passion was firearms and shooting. “Shady Jim” as he was known in the Single Action Shooting Society (SASS), was a decorated competitor for years, and made many great friends doing so. He could be found most nights watching western movies or Carolina basketball. He had a deep knowledge and passion for American history, Purple Martins and hummingbirds.

Jim and Doris spent their summers in Roaring Gap, which was their “happy place”. He was loved by all in the Roaring Gap community. He was a friend to everyone he met and was a true Southern gentleman. Many knew him as incredibly handy and organized.

Jim was a lifelong member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and Roaring Gap Church. He noted that the two greatest influences in his life besides his family have been Woodberry Forest School and church.

He was predeceased by John DeWalden Eller Sr. (father) and Gertrude Seely Eller (mother), John DeWalden Eller Jr. (brother) and Aurelia Eller (sister-in-law), and Alice Eller (sister).

He is survived by his loving wife, Doris McMillan Eller; daughter, Elaine Eller Stephenson and husband, William Cowell Stephenson IV, of Roanoke, Virginia; granddaughter Seely Stephenson Nicholson and husband, Bowman James Nicholson of Raleigh; and grandson William Cowell Stephenson V and wife, Ann Woo Stephenson of Roanoke, Virginia. He is also survived by three great-grandchildren: Grove McMillan Nicholson, Eller Lee Stephenson, and William Snow Nicholson. He loved and supported his family with devotion.

Memorial Service is 11 a.m. Wednesday July 19, 2023 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 520 Summit Street, Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Doris Eller Scholarship Fund at Salem College, Woodberry Forest School (898 Woodberry Forest Rd. Woodberry Forest, Virginia 22989) or St. Paul’s Episcopal Church (520 Summit Street. Winston Salem, North Carolina 27101).

Phillip Alan Sellers, M.D., longtime resident of Hendersonville, NC, died March 9, 2023 in Durham, NC. Dr. Sellers was born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina, the fourth and youngest child of Charles Grier Sellers, an Exxon executive, and Irene Templeton Sellers, a former high school mathematics teacher.

He graduated in 1953 from Davidson College and in 1957 from Bowman Gray (now known as Wake Forest University) Medical School.

In 1955, he married Julia Camlin of Florence, South Carolina, whom he had met while he was a student at Davidson and she was attending nearby Winthrop College. After medical school, Dr. Sellers served as a flight surgeon in the U.S. Army at bases in Texas and New Jersey, then completed his training in internal medicine at the Wake Forest School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, NC.

The couple had their first children during this sojourn, twin sons Jefferey and Christopher, born in Texas in 1958, and Randy, born in Winston-Salem in 1960. Another son, Patrick, arrived in 1964, a year after Dr. Sellers and his family had moved to Hendersonville, NC. It was an area he had visited as a boy, worked in over summers as a teen, and loved for the beauty of its Blue Ridge Mountains.

Joining the medical practice of Dr. Kenneth Cosgrove, Dr. Sellers was instrumental in bringing in additional partners and building it into a highly successful clinical practice, Quality Care Associates, for which he handled much of the business end. Their medical offices lay near Pardee Hospital, where Dr. Sellers and his partners had admitting privileges. Helping to build Pardee’s reputation as an excellent community hospital, he chaired its ethics committee, served as chief of staff, and became the first practicing physician to serve on its Board.

A general internist, Dr. Sellers practiced medicine for over sixty years, earning a reputation as a “doctor’s doctor” for his up-to-date knowledge and his compassionate style of practice. Dr Sellers’s concern for patient-centered care led him to pen an article for The North Carolina Medical Journal in 2004 which focused on end-of- life issues. He then led a task force to develop the Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment form, a statewide portable medical order that clarifies a patient’s end-of-life preferences.

Dr. Sellers won many honors, including the Laureate Award of the North Carolina Chapter of the American College of Physicians, and the E. Harvey Estes Jr., M.D., Physician Community Service Award from the North Carolina Medical Society. When President George Bush visited western North Carolina in the early 1990s, Dr. Sellers was selected as the doctor on call to care for him. His patients were devoted to him; many insisted that they hoped they would die before he retired.

After his retirement in 2006, Dr. Sellers helped organize and staff a free medical clinic for uninsured community members, served on the county board of health, and taught English to children recently immigrated to the U.S. A lifelong Presbyterian, Dr. Sellers was a founding member of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Hendersonville; he served there as an Elder as well as taught Sunday school classes. Dr. Sellers loved to play tennis and continued to enjoy that sport into his late 70s. He also loved the outdoors and eagerly led family and friends on hikes around Mt. Pisgah and Mt. Mitchell. On his frequent walks along what became the Oklawaha Greenway to Jackson Park, he carried a bag to pick up the trash, leaving the trail “better than I found it.”

Dr. Sellers was a loving and devoted father and grandfather ready to play cards, shoot baskets, and do puzzles with his boys and their families. After a few years’ residence in Lake Pointe Landing, in 2021, he and his wife Julia moved to a care facility in Durham NC, where he died on March 9.

Dr. Sellers is survived by his wife of 67 years, Julia Camlin Sellers; his four sons Jefferey (Laura Scott), Christopher (Nancy), Randolph (Laura Terry), and Patrick (Kathyrn); and his five grandchildren Scott Sellers, Anne Camlin Sellers, Charles Sellers, Margaret Sellers, and Benjamin Sellers.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 2pm on Saturday, April 15, at Trinity Presbyterian Church, 900 Blythe Street, Hendersonville, NC., with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that memorial contributions might be made to Trinity Presbyterian Church, the Hendersonville Free Clinics (https://www.thefreeclinics.org/donate/), or Jackson Park (send check with fund code “JACK” to Community Foundation of Henderson County, 401 N Main St, Ste 300, Hendersonville, NC 28792).

Allen Irving Vance, age 91, passed away peacefully on Sunday, October 2 at Oakmont at Gordon Park Bristol, VA. A devout Christian who loved serving others, he was a kind, compassionate, loving husband, father, brother, uncle, grandfather and friend. Allen was born in Bristol, Tennessee, a graduate of Tennessee High School, class of 1949 and served as the senior class president. He was a sports enthusiast, earned the rank of Eagle Scout and was a lifelong tennis player. He graduated from Davidson College in 1953, where he played on the basketball and baseball teams, was a member of the Kappa Alpha Fraternity and the Interfraternity Council. Upon graduation, he served as a rifle platoon leader in the United States Army, serving his last year of active duty in Salzburg, Austria. After his service duty discharge, he attended the Graduate Business School at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, where he met his beloved wife, Retta Jelks.
Allen spent his career in banking, working primarily for Tri-City Bank in Bristol. He enjoyed serving as an elder and deacon of Central Presbyterian Church, Bristol, VA, the church where his grandparents were charter members in 1875. Allen served on the boards of the Chamber of Commerce of Bristol, BTES, and King University Advisory Board. He was an active member of the Lions Club and Rotary Club of Bristol VA/TN and founded the Kappa Alpha Alumni Chapter of the Tri-Cities.
In 1980, Allen and Retta moved to Savannah, GA, Retta’s hometown for 25 years before returning back to retire in Bristol. While in Savannah, Allen worked in banking and later worked in development for the YMCA, served as a deacon and elder of First Presbyterian Church and later became a member of Christ Episcopal Church. He was a founding member and President of the Savannah Kappa Alpha Alumni and received The Kappa Alpha Knight Commander Award, the highest honor on a national level. Allen was a board member of the American Red Cross, an active member of the Southside Rotary Club and was recognized as a Will Watt Fellow and a Paul Harris Fellow.
Allen was preceded in death by his brothers Dr. Graham Vance (Martha) of West Plains, Mo, Dr. Fred Vance, Jr. (Ann) of Bristol, TN and brother-in-law Freeman Jelks, Jr. of Savannah, GA. He is survived by his wife, Retta Jelks Vance of 65 years, their three daughters, Julie Brown (Bill) of Kingsport, TN, Retta Poynter (Jay) of Charlotte, NC and Helen Scott (Bob) of Bristol, TN. He is also survived by four grandchildren Molly Brown of Kingsport, TN, Sam Scott of Knoxville, TN, Brian Scott of Bristol, TN and Lauren Poynter of Lynchburg, VA, as well as numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
Visitation will be on Saturday, October 8 in Central Hall of Central Presbyterian Church Bristol, VA from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. followed by a memorial service in the sanctuary at 2:00 p.m. Allen will be laid to rest at Shelby Hills Cemetery Bristol, TN following the service.
The family would like to thank the staff of Oakmont, Elite Hospice and his caregivers Nancy, Laura, Jessica and Angie for their loving and compassionate care.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Central Presbyterian Church 331 Euclid Ave Bristol, VA 24201 or Healing Hands Health Center 245 Midway Medical Park Bristol, TN 37620.
Condolences and memories may be shared with the family at akardfuneralhome.com
Akard Funeral Home, (423) 989-4800 is honored to be serving the Vance family.

Dr. Harold Duke Fowler, Jr. (November 30, 1930 – July 28, 2022) was born in Statesville, NC to Harold Duke Fowler, Sr. and Nova Beaver Fowler. He was a proud graduate of Davidson College and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Dentistry. Dr. Fowler worked in his own dental practice for many years in Statesville and Mt. Airy. He also served as a public health dentist for the State of North Carolina for 27 years. In that capacity he provided free dental work to those children in need of special care throughout Surry, Stokes, Yadkin, and Davie counties.

Dr. Fowler, known to his friends as Duke, belonged to the First Baptist Church of Pilot Mountain where he served as deacon, sang in the choir, taught Sunday school, and was often head chef for the men’s breakfast.

After retirement, he traveled regularly with his wife, Sue, and their friends to places such as Pennsylvania Amish Country, San Antonio, New Orleans, Hawaii, Alaska, and British Columbia. He also discovered his favorite place in the world, Costa Rica, where he ziplined through the rain forest at the age of 81!

Duke will be remembered for his charismatic personality and ability to fascinate with his charms; his penchant for puns and funny jokes, and being well versed in all kinds of trivia (a self-described “encyclopedia of useless information”); a story or anecdote for every occasion; the wooden cars and birdhouses he crafted by hand; the highly anticipated annual calendar he created and printed for his children with everyone’s birthday, age, and anniversaries; and his love of all creatures, especially cats.

Duke is survived by his beloved wife of 38 years, M. Sue Byrd Fowler; 5 children, Donna Fowler, Shawn Martin (Hal), Tres Fowler (Terry), Shannon Johnson (Terry), and Sharee Fowler, (John); 2 stepsons, Michael Lyon (Annette) and John Gregory Lyon; 13 grandchildren; 5 great-grandchildren; and his cherished friend and caregiver, Cindi Barber.

Visitation will be held at 10:00 am on Tuesday, August 2 at the First Baptist Church of Pilot Mountain followed by a funeral service at 11:00 am. To honor Duke’s big heart for animals and all of the stray kitties he cared for over the years, the family requests that donations be made to the Forsyth Humane Society. Memorial donations may also be made to the First Baptist Church of Pilot Mountain.

Cox-Needham Funeral Home is respectfully serving the Fowler family.

Please sign the guestbook at www.coxneedham.com, www.facebook.com/coxneedham.