Louise Fenn

In the year that the stock market crashed (not that her family had any stock); the year that The Great Depression began; the year that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born; the year that Herbert Hoover was sworn in as President of the United States of America; the year that Grace Kelly was born and the first Academy Awards were aired; in that same year, on February 14, 1929 - Louise Fenn was born as the second child to Henry and Nealie Fenn. Her parents went on to have a total of 14 children, with Mrs. Fenn being one of the last two surviving siblings. Upon her demise on December 19, 2024, she was 95 years old, and would have turned 96 in just 2 more months (February 14, 2025).

The Bible says that “Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far away.” Although Mrs. Fenn’s oldest brother Emmet was born with Cerebral Palsy, she and her second brother, Aron, personified this verse from Proverbs 22:15. She often recounted that the two of them got into everything, sneaking food (although their mother and father provided bountiful food for all the children and neighbors), and stealing any sweets – home-baked or otherwise – that came into the house. On one occasion she described her parents leaving her and Aron at home while they went to visit the sick. Their mother had baked fresh tea cakes, placed them in a pan, then a bag, and tied them up to the ceiling to remove them from Louise’s and Aron’s reach. However, Louise stood on a chair, then hoisted her brother Aron onto her shoulders so that they could take the sweets down and eat them. Yes, there were consequences when their parents returned, but it never curtailed their willful behavior. King Solomon is still scratching his head – he hadn’t foreseen these two when he wrote this proverb.

Louise attended school at St. Michael AME Church, the local church school for all Blacks in the community, from the 1st through the 9th grade. This is the point where education ended for most Blacks at that time, but Louise’s grandmother lived in Dothan, Alabama. So, her parents sent her to live with her grandmother in order to attend North Highland School in Dothan Al, where she graduated the 12th grade. She was even blessed to attend Alabama State University for a short amount of time before she moved to Detroit, MI.

As happened with much of the Black migration north, Mrs. Fenn followed her mother’s sister back to Detroit, when her aunt came to AL to visit her family. Mrs. Fenn saw the best possibility of making a successful life for herself was to move to Detroit, as her parents were share-croppers with 14 children, and she did not have the funds to complete college.

In Detroit, she found employment at Hudson Hospital, where she worked for 30 years. As was the case for most of the Blacks who worked at the hospital, the pay was poor, the working conditions were less than desirable, and raises were nearly non-existent. Yet, she persevered there for 30 years, finally being promoted to the pharmacy as her last role at the hospital prior to retirement in 1991.

Her parents, having deep spiritual roots, instructed Louise – and all of their children, to unite with a church family as soon as they arrived at their destination. Therefore, Mrs. Fenn joined Ebenezer AME Church, under the leadership of Reverend Robert Thomas, soon after she arrived in Detroit. She was a faithful member, joining both the Rose of Sharon and the Excelsior choirs. She also served on the Senior Citizens and Hospitality Committees for many years, even during retirement, until she relocated to Dothan, AL, in 2007. In her work at the hospital, and in her service to her church, she followed the scripture that states, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.”

Upon relocation to Dothan, AL, Mrs. Fenn joined Parks Chapel AME Church under the leadership of Reverend Oliver Allen, a church that she loved, and a church that indeed demonstrated their love for her throughout her 17 years in Dothan! All of her family knew about Parks Chapel: That they picked her up for church as long as she was able to attend; that members saved breakfast for her on Sundays until she arrived; that certain members of the church baked for her and made jellies and jams; that the members called frequently to check on her well-being and her needs; that her pastor came to her home and to the nursing home to pray with her and administer Communion – Parks Chapel AME truly demonstrated the Love of God to Mrs. Fenn through word, thought and deed. Certainly, we acknowledge that her caretaker, Sherry Lloyd, is a member of the “Love Brigade” of Parks Chapel AME. Upon meeting, Mrs. Fenn fell in love with Sherry; Sherry fell in love with Mrs. Fenn; and the entire Fenn Family fell in love with Parks Chapel AME and with Sherry.

~ LOUISE MOMENTS ~

Once, when the driver who picked Mrs. Fenn up for church at Parks Chapel was about to take her back home after service, she said to him firmly, “We are not going home right now. We are going to the hospital to see my sister!” Then in a very sweet voice she said, “Are you OK with that?”

Mrs. Fenn always had a robust appetite, consuming 3 meals per day. She was diagnosed with diabetes more than 40 years ago, taking insulin up until about 3 years ago (all the while eating more sweets than a pie-taster). Three years ago, the doctor announced that she no longer needed insulin, something we had never heard of before with anyone. The family thought about it and declared that she had eaten up the diabetes!

Even though she lost her eyesight before relocating to Dothan, Alabama, Mrs. Fenn somehow amassed an entire network of people (Parks Chapel and others) who brought her meals, treats, snacks and sweets of every kind. She never disclosed the identity of her secret allies.

If you were one of the bakers in the family speaking with Mrs. Fenn by phone, yet hadn’t sent her baked goods recently, she would whisper, CAKE, just before she hung up.

Having outlived all of her siblings except one, Mrs. Louise Fenn departed this life, Thursday, December 19, 2024 at 5:30 P.M. Her family asked the Nursing Home staff to place the phone next to her ear throughout the day in order that we could express our love to her and pray with her. Although she was transitioning, she opened her eyes, or tried to respond to us many times, especially when we shared how much we loved her.

She leaves to cherish her memories and mourn her passing, her devoted daughter, Christine Williams (John) of Cincinnati, Ohio; one adoring sister, Johnnie Bond of Copiague, New York; a host of loving nieces and nephews; friends whom she considered family, her devoted surrogate daughter and caretaker Sherry Lloyd, and an extraordinarily loving church family at Parks Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church.

We Miss You Already And Will Never Stop Loving You – The Family!

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