In Loving Memory Verlie Reid TatumApril 12, 1917 â?? October 13, 2013Saturday, October 19, 20131:00 p.m.Providence Baptist Church 1106 Tuscaloosa Street, Greensboro, North CarolinaReverend Dr. Howard Allen Chubbs, OfficiatingObituaryVerlie Reid TatumVerlie Reid Tatum, the daughter of Frank Reid and Mary Staples Reid was born April 2, 1917 in Spencer, Virginia. She moved to Greensboro, North Carolina with her husband, Berkley Tatum in 1936. Raising four children, Verlie was a housewife until her youngest son went to Junior High School. She enrolled in Maco Beauty College and eventually operated a beauty salon in her home. She prided herself on her work and considered herself a â??hair doctorâ??. As a cosmetologist, she belonged to the Gate City Beautician Club where she served as an officer. She especially enjoyed attending the Bonner Brothers Trade Show in Atlanta, Georgia. Many nieces, nephews, and all of her grandchildren and great grands shared her home and experienced her love and care. She was tough and they knew when she meant business. The grandchildren often reminisce on her many antics: one in particular was how fast she drove and how she could take those curves in Virginia when she took them with her to the â??countryâ??. When she was 60, Verlie began a 2nd motherhood and took her granddaughter Tanya from age one through college. Along with Tanya, she raised Austin, a great grandson. Verlie Tatum was the original â??Betty Whiteâ??, young at heart and always eager to broaden her horizon. At the age of 89 she enrolled in a water aerobics class at Hayes Taylor YMCA and went on to secure a job at Friends Home West as a â??Dining Room Assistant.â?? She said her duty was to help â??Old Peopleâ?? get to the dining room. She prided herself on her job and never considered herself as â??old.â?? In fact if you made the mistake of calling her â??oldâ?? or a â??senior citizenâ?? or â??elderlyâ?? you probably got a fist shaken at you.A devoted member of Providence Baptist Church, Verlie served as an Usher and a member of the Philathea Missionary Society and the Community Service Guild. She loved her church and adored her Pastor, Dr. Howard A. Chubbs. Her faith in God sustained her through her many health challenges. Verlie was preceded in death by her husband, Berkley Tatum; son: Thurman, and a grandson, Hassoun. She will always be lovingly remembered by her two daughters: Margaret Thomas of Raleigh, North Carolina and Juanita Richmond of (Stoney Creek) Whitsett, North Carolina; son: Berkley Tatum (Yvonne); brother: Barnes Reid of Newark, New Jersey with whom she enjoyed weekly telephone calls, and sister-in-law Estelle Tatum. Grandma Verlie loved her grandchildren: Michael of California, Sheryle of Georgia, Jay of Raleigh, Thurman IIof Georgia, Monty of New Jersey, Lisa of Greensboro, Sean of Pennsylvania, Tamia of California, and Ronnie of Greensboro. The great grandchildren got to know and enjoy their great Grandmother just as their parents had for she had the same spirit of joy and energy with them. Nieces and nephews were like her children and they favored and admired her for her beauty, fashion sense, and spunky personality. Thomas Scott (Squeaky) was a caregiver for his aunt and admired and respected her kind heart and fierce discipline that was her trademark. Hermina Long and Judy Rucker were like daughters in their visits and interest in her welfare. Edward Shelton, her â??adopted sonâ?? was always there for her and John Holt was a dear friend and neighbor. She will be greatly missed. While at Heartland Living and Rehabilation Center, Verlie received tender loving care by the caregivers. Her personality never wavered and her great sense of humor and love for people manifested in her relationship with the staff and participants at PACE and with the Heartland staff and residents where she was revered. She was a person that people were drawn to for she never met a stranger. Her beautiful smile and charm made you feel special and you could always count on her word.