Mrs. Mildred “Ann” Hornsby, age 78 of Union, passed away peacefully Wednesday, November 15, 2023.
Mrs. Hornsby was born a coal miner’s daughter to Charlie and Wilma Bells on February 23, 1945, in Besoco, W. Va. She was blessed with a sister, Linda Allen (husband David Allen) of Flat Top, W.Va. nine years later. She fell in love and married Emory “Bud” Hornsby and spent the next 50 years making memories until his passing in 2013. She had two wild and crazy children who caused her dark hair to turn grey, Charles Hornsby (Juanita) and Andrea Kirchner (Karl). She adored her grandchildren, Tyler Hornsby, Kristin Kirchner, Aleigha Karson Hornsby, Whitney Boyer and Eva “Pixie” Boyer. She loved her nieces and nephews to the moon and back.
Ann had a gift for making everyone feel welcomed, accepted and loved. Yes, she had many wonderful attributes (she was feisty, independent, and high-spirited), but she will be remembered for the love and kindness she shared with others. She always created a safe and loving place for everyone, loving them exactly as they were. Her heart was big enough to share with anyone who needed it and was a bonus Mom and Memaw to many. She had an adventurous spirit and took every opportunity to hit the road in search of it. In her late 60’s she went tubing with her family down the Green River in NC, only telling them afterwards that she didn’t know how to swim. In her 70’s, she took a helicopter ride over the ocean at Myrtle Beach.
When she lived in Chicago in the late 1960’s, she and Bud would drive to Indiana for a hotdog. She was truly a woman who didn’t let excuses stand in her way!
Ann’s work ethic was without equal, more times than not she would work through the night to finish a job. There wasn’t much Ann couldn’t do (except teach her daughter how to drive a stick shift, Andrea had to learn that on her own). Ann’s personal moto was best described as “It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness”. When she saw a need, she gave selflessly to help others. If Ann touched your life, light a candle for her today and spread the love she had for you out into the world.
A service to celebrate her life will be held at a later date.
Memorials in her name may be made to the Union County Cancer Society, c/o Lou Stackhouse, 300 E. South St., Union, SC 29379 or to the Spartanburg Regional Hospice Home, 686 Jeff Davis Dr., Spartanburg, SC 29303.
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