Norma (Riggs) Haynes' Obituary
Norma Alice Riggs Haynes went to be with her Savior on Tuesday January 7, 2025. She was 87 years old. She died in her home at Trezevant Terrace in Memphis TN, surrounded by loved ones. She had made a remarkable recovery from a stroke she suffered in 1997. Another stroke in 2017 robbed her of the ability to speak clearly. She recently declined after a relatively brief illness.
Norma was born in Jacksonville TX, on February 23, 1937, to Harvey and Alice Gray Riggs. The youngest of 4 children, she grew up in a family on the move as the daughter of an itinerant Church of Christ preacher. With extended family in Western Kentucky, she spent her adolescent years in Owensboro and graduated valedictorian of her high school class in 1954. She attended David Lipscomb College (now Lipscomb University) in Nashville TN, majoring in Speech, finishing in 1958. She was selected by her classmates as Miss David Lipscomb during her Senior Year there.
Norma moved to Memphis TN, where she was engaged by Harding Academy to teach English and sponsor the Speech and Debate Club. She attended Union Avenue Church of Christ, where her oldest brother served as music minister. There, at a holiday party for singles, she met Douglas B Haynes Jr, whom she would marry in 1960. A snowstorm blanketed the Owensboro KY area on their wedding date, December 23, making it a memorable event for all involved.
Four children soon followed. Her husband’s work as a physician in the Public Health Service took them to Clarksdale MS, where sons Bryant and Sean were born. Her husband’s residency took them back to Memphis, where twin daughters Elizabeth (“Bess”) and Leslie were born. This was the era of the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War, making it a challenging time to raise children. Norma and her family soon settled in Dyersburg TN, where her husband’s extended family lived, and where he, along with several other physicians, established the Internal Medicine Clinic. They lived in Dyersburg for the next five decades.
Busy with raising her children and involved with her church, Norma also found time to engage in various civic affairs and organizations. She participated actively in the local music club, community orchestra, community chorus, and she sponsored youth organizations. She supported her husband as he led the local community concert series, bringing superior musical talent to Dyersburg. With her husband and several other families, she helped establish the Tucker Street Church, where she poured her energy into various ministries.
Norma enjoyed music, a legacy that she passed to the next generation. She lifted her voice in song in her own church congregation, as well as with others in the local community. Norma’s alto voice could be heard in public performances with the Dyersburg Choral Society and in other ecumenical groups for special events. Norma studied violin from an early age, and she participated in various ensembles as she had opportunity. For four decades Norma played violin in the Dyersburg Community Orchestra, rehearsing weekly for regular concerts that could be heard at the local community college.
She enjoyed the monthly musical gathering of the MacDowell Music Club, where she served in several
offices over the years. She nurtured the love of music in her children.
A devoted volunteer, Norma liked to encourage folks to read, serving as a reading volunteer in area elementary schools, and teaching adults to read with the local literacy program. She helped raise funds for the local hospital as part of the Women’s Medical Auxiliary, for Dyersburg High School as a booster with the band program, and for other clubs. Whatever her children were involved in, she was involved in, too – teaching Bible study, hosting foreign exchange students through the American Field Service, and serving as Girl Scout troop leader and Cub Scout den mother.
Hospitality played a large role in Norma’s life. She and her husband frequently invited folks–family and friends, old and new – for meals in their home, and later at the family’s log cabin Vilja located outside Dyersburg. Norma cared for the people around her. Known as ‘Granny’ to her grandchildren, she was a supportive wife and amazing mother and grandmother. She was a great cook – no one could beat her apple pie! She enjoyed doing all kinds of needlework, crafting many beautiful cross stitch and embroidered pieces.
Norma leaves behind her children Bryant Haynes (Claire) of Chattanooga TN, Sean Haynes (Kari) of Memphis TN, Bess Kendrick-Holmes (Dimon) of Greensboro NC, and Leslie Tesh (Kris) of The Woodlands TX, her beloved sister/brother-in-law Joan and Tracy Latham of Dyersburg TN, 10 grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband of 59 years Douglas B Haynes Jr, her sister Grace Riggs Hougey, and her brothers Robert Riggs and James Riggs. Norma’s family would like to express their profound thanks for the care given by the staff at Trezevant, particularly Tina Barnes, and by the staff of Hope Hospice, including Kandace Woodruff and Chaplain Bobby Lawson.
Arrangements are with Memorial Park Funeral Home (5668 Poplar Ave, Memphis TN 38119).
Visitation is scheduled for Monday January 20 at 10 AM with a memorial service following at 11 AM. A reception will follow. In lieu of flowers, gifts could be made to McIver’s Grant Public Library, to St Jude
Children’s Hospital, or to the American Stroke Association (a division of the American Heart Association).
If you are unable to attend Mrs. Haynes' service, you may watch by clicking this link: https://webcast.funeralvue.com/events/northstar/108765/hash:6C91900D12A189B4.
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