Obituary of Lovestine Daughtry Everton

 

 

Tina Everton was always a surprise.

 

Lovestine Grantham Daughtry was born in Clinton, NC in 1928 as a surprise to her parents.  She also surprised her 15-year-old sister Louise and her 16-year-old brother DeWitt.

 

With her spirited personality, Lovestine quickly became known as Tina.

 

As a determined young woman, she attended East Carolina Teachers College (now East Carolina University). Life surprised Tina when she met Myron Everton, a Merchant Marine World War II veteran. It was no surprise that they fell in love. They graduated, got married and immediately headed to California to start Myron's new Air Force career. Tina surprised her family and her small hometown with her sense of adventure and grit as she embraced the Air Force life.

 

In her early years as an Air Force wife, Tina celebrated each new assignment with the birth of a child, welcoming Marsha Marie in 1951 in California, Norma Louise in 1954 in Texas, Laura Lynn in 1955 in Virginia, Myron Mitchell in 1958 in Ohio and Spencer Douglas in 1960 in Alabama.

 

In the mid-60s, Tina continued her journey of surprises, juggling the responsibilities of five children with a career teaching at the Canal Zone College in Panama.  She was a pace-setting role model for mothers with professional careers.

 

In the late-60s, as Myron served in Viet Nam, Tina moved the family back to the United States and set the pace for her five school-age children by also becoming a student, attending Barry College (now Barry University) and earning a Master’s Degree in Counseling. 

 

With Myron’s return from Viet Nam and assignment to the Pentagon, Tina began what became a 25-year career in the Fairfax County (Virginia) School System.  In her role as a Guidance Counselor, she researched and published a pioneering program for grief counseling for public schools.

 

Throughout this journey, Tina was always active and engaged in the Baptist church community.  With Myron, she created a teacher-training program for the Southern Baptist Convention.  At Calvary Hill Baptist Church, she was a trailblazer, becoming the first female deacon.

 

Tina’s home was always a hive of activity.  It was the place where everyone gathered and was welcome.  The diversity of her guests, especially in the 60s, challenged the norms of her neighbors with consequences that provided early lessons to her children about the importance of respect and inclusion. 

 

Tina rarely had an “empty nest”.  After launching her five children into their adult lives, she welcomed a series of other young adults into her home, nurturing them as they created new chapters in their lives.

 

In 1996, Tina continued the journey of surprises and reinvention, making the bold decision, with Myron, to move to the brand-new Falcons Landing Military Retirement Community.  Tina embraced what she called the “retirement resort” and was an architect and influence for many of the amenities and services of the Community.

 

 

In 2016, Tina continued her journey as a widow, with the loss of Myron in December.

 

Tina Everton was a remarkable, trailblazing woman but she did not measure her success by her professional and community accomplishments.  Her greatest joy was her fourteen grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, her true legacy.

 

Tina died peacefully in her sleep in her Falcons Landing apartment on September 19, 2018.

 

Tina is survived by her five children, Marsha Everton of Lemoyne, PA, Norma Friddle of Black Mountain, NC, Laura Mayo of Fairfax, VA, M. Mitchell Everton of Sykesville, MD, Spencer Everton of Woodbridge, VA .

 

A memorial service will be held on June 19, 2019 at 2:00 PM in the Falcons Landing Memorial Chapel, followed by a reception.  Burial services will be held at Arlington National Cemetery the following day on June 20, 2019 at 10:00 AM.

 

Arrangements are being handled through Adams-Green Funeral Home in Herndon, VA.

 

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Boulder Crest Retreat, P.O. Box 117, Bluemont, VA, 20135 or Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, (TAPS), 3033 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 630, Arlington, VA, 22201.