Martha Wardlaw Kimmel was born in McComb, MS on February 16, 1924 and passed away peacefully on Saturday, August 20, 2022, in the town she loved. For nearly a century and over six generations, Mrs. Kimmel, also known as Ms. Martha or "Mamaw," lived life to the fullest as the matriarch of a large family, a community volunteer and a force to be reckoned with.

She was born between the World Wars and was a child during the Great Depression; her father Roy "Doc" Wardlaw had a steady job at the railroad as the round-house superintendent.  She often spoke of being grateful during her childhood to have food and clothing to share with friends and neighbors and how it encouraged her lifelong volunteerism. Martha is on the "cradle roll" as being baptized at J.J. White Presbyterian Church in their "new" building, then just built in 1921.

After her family moved to DeSoto, Illinois with the railroad, she met the love of her life at the age of 14 in junior high - Robert Eugene Kimmel. They were together from that moment, and as highschoolers experienced the start of WWII in 1939. After high school, she attended Belhaven College for a time, but since smoking and dancing were prohibited, she was ready to get on with life. At 18 and against their parent's wishes, just before Robert left for Army Air Force basic training, they borrowed a car, crossed the state line and quietly eloped and married in Missouri on September 11, 1942.  By the time they returned, their nuptials had been announced on the radio and the secret was out. For better and for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, they remained in love through all their seasons of life.

Robert Kimmel Senior's dream was to be a veterinarian, so after he was honorably discharged from service, they spent the next few years working to support his veterinary education at the University of Georgia.  And they had kids. In these early years, she was mother to a rowdy crew that grew to five, over the years living in Illinois, Indiana, then Georgia, and finally settling back in Mississippi.  During this time, Martha worked as a waitress, a chicken plucker (she never ate chicken again), and eventually as front desk manager and chief cage scrubber at the McComb Animal Hospital.

Life moved fast and money was tight as they invested in what would become a third-generation family business. Today, Robert Kimmel, Jr., and Genie Kimmel Simmons are veterinarians and Melanie Carruth is the clinic manager. Like many of the "Greatest Generation" who lived through the Great Depression and WWII, Martha was loyal, patriotic, self-sacrificing, frugal, hardworking and fun loving.

Over the next years, she and Robert raised their five children – Robert "Robbie" Eugene Kimmel, Jr., Wrenell "Sissy" Kimmel Barr, Ruth "Ruthie" Kimmel Conn, Joseph "Joe" Roy Kimmel, and Sara "Sack" Kimmel - all of whom eventually returned to live with their families in Mississippi.

Martha was a woman with little spare time, but many hobbies and passions. While raising children and working, she and Robert spent what time they had bowling, square dancing, playing bridge and Blackjack.  They then took up leisure sports and swam, played tennis and golf.  She could reliably be found at the Fernwood Country Club pool with a Tab (or Pabst Blue Ribbon) and cigarette in one hand, and a fly swatter in the other hand while watching her granddaughters struggle through water ballet.

As a grandmother, she was often seen at Skate City or dance afterschool or on the football, basketball, soccer or baseball fields cheering on her many athletes. She was bold and adventurous and believed in the power of formal education, but never traveled overseas, by choice. She thought if you couldn't find fun someplace between Gulf Shores and Las Vegas, you didn't have much of an imagination.

On quiet and rainy days, she drank coffee, listened to Willie Nelson, Joan Baez and Hank Williams Senior and worked on puzzles or played pick-up sticks with one generation or another. If you dared to challenge her to Scrabble, she would happily administer a merciless intellectual flogging.  At 87, she had a series of strokes that damaged her speech and she STILL beat us all in Scrabble with little effort. Her very favorite hobby was reading in bed with a sleeve of saltines and taking her routine afternoon nap.

"Mamaw" was beloved by her 13 grandchildren and 14 great grandkids. These great grandchildren ranging in age from 2 to 24, know how fortunate they were to have known Martha Kimmel as their "Grand-ma-moo." She was beautiful inside and out, possessed the sharpest wit, loved to laugh and was faithful to her community and devoted to her family.

Martha was recognized by The McComb Exchange Club and honored with the Book of Golden Deeds Award. She also received the Harry Creagan Memorial Award from MICA (McComb Interdenominational Care Association). Feeding her community fed her spiritually and gave her precious time to serve with close friends.  For a time, she even acted in McComb Little Theater plays, the perfect channel for her big personality. She was a long-time member of J.J. White Presbyterian Church and a member of New Covenant Presbyterian Church.

Always, always, she was a faithful servant of God in all things. We benefited from her prayers and the example she set. She began to lose her eyesight to macular degeneration in 2004 and even this did not dampen her good cheer and positive outlook.  She knew friends and family by their gait and could identify you with just a step. She was not daunted by the prospect of death and looked forward to eternity.

Martha and Robert Kimmel, Sr., were married for 52 years when cancer took him in 1994.  Even though she lived each day joyfully, Martha mourned Robert every day of her remaining years without him. Even in our grief, we take great comfort in knowing they are reunited in heaven after all these years.

Martha Kimmel is survived by all five of her children: Robert Kimmel and his wife Kum Ja, their four children Merianne and husband Steve Roth and their children, Truman and Grady; Melanie and her husband Russ Carruth and their children Emma Grace and Davis; Genie and her husband Dusty Simmons and their child Sam; and Joe Kimmel.

Wrenell "Sissy" Kimmel and her husband Wilson Barr, their children Vince Barr and his wife Marla and their children Ben and Beau; Kathy Barr Oakes and her children Buck, Barr and Anna Wren.

Ruthie Kimmel and her husband John Conn.

Joe Kimmel and his wife Kristine, his children Will Kimmel and his wife Melissa; Stephen Kimmel and his daughters Natalie and Maisie; Ross Ketchum, Megan Patterson and her children Ari, Parker and Kaiden; and Whitney Ketchum.

Sara Kimmel and her daughter Jordan Kimmel and her son Wren; and son Jake Kimmel.

Please join us for a Celebration of Life at Hartman Jones Funeral Home this Sunday, August 28, from 2 – 4 p.m., followed by a graveside reading at Hollywood Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, we ask that donations be made to a charity close to your heart, or one of her favorites: PALS Rescue (1071 Marks Road, McComb, MS 39648); Crisis Pregnancy Center (P.O. Box 1655, McComb, MS 39649) or MICA (126 N. 5 ^th Street).

We remain eternally grateful for the friends that visited Martha faithfully for years, as well as the caregivers who supported her at Camellia Estates.  At 98, she outlived most of her generation and most of her friends.  You brought her joy, conversation, companionship and sometimes, chocolate.