Mary Irene Givens, age 99 of Franklin, TN passed away January 12, 2019 just a few days short of her 100th birthday. The world lost someone very special. She leaves behind her siblings, Pauline Pewitt & JW (Louise) Givens both of Franklin, TN and her baby sister, Alma Rowe of California. Irene was preceded in death by her parents, John & Ludie Esther Givens. She attended Lincoln Elementary School in Davidson County, TN, Hillsboro High School and graduated from Franklin High School. Irene continued her education in Nashville, TN at a secretarial school where upon completing her civil service test in 1941, she hopped on a train headed to Washington, D.C. She was very proud of her position with the government. There she typed pay checks for the men in the arm forces. Another one of the many unsung heroes of the greatest generation. Her unit transferred to Newark, New Jersey for a short amount of time. Then Irene returned to Washington, D.C. where she continued to be employed by the government until she retired in 1970 at which point she moved back to the family farm in Fernvale, TN where she cared for her mother and father. Unfortunately, she lost her father that same year. Irene remained on the farm with her mother who passed away in 1997. She enjoyed sewing, quilting, gardening and most of all painting. Among her many talents, she was an excellent painter. Irene’s favorite subject were red roses. While living in Washington, Irene made several close friends. Together they enjoyed the train to New York City, Virginia and wherever else the train would take them. On meager funds, Irene loved hosting dinner parties in her tiny apartment. She enjoyed visiting the Washington monuments and sitting under the cherry blossom trees. Irene was beautiful inside and out. Fifteen days shy of her 100th birthday, her beautiful red hair, and cream complexion had faded a bit, but her beauty inside never did. She was gentle, kind and thankful. Irene never had a cross word for anyone. She was always the first to forgive. Irene had a personal relationship with Jesus at a very young age. That relationship was strong to the very end. The last three years Irene was gracious enough to share a good amount of her time with me, her niece from California. Irene could tell the best stories about growing up on the farm. Both her parents came from large families, she would spend hours explaining to me who was who, and who married who. Her favorite food group was chocolate. When she decided she was full, after breakfast, dinner and supper, I would bring out the chocolate ice cream, brownies and of course the buttermilk. She never had a problem consuming them all. Irene had a great sense of humor. If you asked her how old she was, she would reply “39” with that twinkle in her eye. She would look around a room full of people about her same age, then she’d lean into me and say “you and I are never going to look that old.” Her favorite TV show was the Andy Griffith Show. Once again that humor surfaced. She would say “I didn’t think Aunt Bea was aging well.” We would both be laughing so hard, we had tears in our eyes. I could fill this newspaper with wonderful things about Irene, and still not list them all. I’m the lucky one because Irene shared so much of herself with me. A graveside service in Mt. Hope Cemetery will be held at a later date.

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