MARGARET ENGLAND WILKES, 89, of Memphis, and formerly of Greenville, MS, died Monday, May 22, 2006 at Parkview Apartments in Memphis, where she had been living for the last several years. Mrs. Wilkes was a widely known sculptor, botanical artist and civic leader. The family will receive friends from 1-2 p.m. Thursday, May 25 and funeral service will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at First Presbyterian Church in Greenville. Burial in Greenville Cemetery under the direction of Boone-Wells Funeral Home. Mrs. Wilkes was born September 7, 1916, and was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Addams England. She moved to Greenville, MS with her parents in 1926. In 1936, she graduated with honors from the Gulf Park College of Gulfport, MS, where she was member of The President's Club. In 1937, she was Queen of the Mississippi Delta Cotton Carnival. In 1938, she graduated with honors from Rhodes College, where she was May Queen of 1938. As a sculptor, Mrs. Wilkes began her career working with chisel and cast stone, featuring Birds of Prey sculptures that became well known through numerous national exhibitions. As a painter, Mrs. Wilkes worked primarily in watercolor and was widely commissioned, including a dozen major works "12 Months of Flowers of Mississippi," that were commissioned by and hang in the Governor's Mansion of Mississippi. Her work was exhibited for many years at the New York Armory Works on Paper Exhibitions. In her paintings, Mrs. Wilkes featured botanicals and insects with studied realism. Often Mrs. Wilkes would collect specimens for multiple generations, keeping a small natural history collection, observing small variations within each plant or insect species, and understanding those variations before commencing any attempt to represent by brush and paint. Her paintings were also adapted to needlepoint canvas. Mrs. Wilkes was a member of the Garden Club off America (GCA) for more than fifty years, President of the Greenville Garden Club from 1957-1958, and President of the Garden Clubs of Mississippi from 1963-1965. Mrs. Wilkes was a Director on the board of the Deep South Region Garden Clubs and served as the National Chair of Scholarships. Mrs. Wilkes was also member of the National Council of Garden Clubs. She was awarded many flower arranging awards by the GCA, and her paintings continue to be reproduced as part of the GCA's National Fundraising efforts. The Greenville Garden Club's Flower Show Trophy was named in honor of Mrs. Wilkes and is given annually for the 'Best Use of Color.' Mrs. Wilkes was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Greenville, where she was Sunday school teacher and served as Superintendent of Sunday school. Mrs. Wilkes was also Bible Study Leader and a member of the Alter Guild. She was also a longtime active member of the Greenville Junior Auxiliary. She was the widow of the Honorable Burwell Baylor "B. B." Wilkes IV. Judge Wilkes graduated from Harvard University and from Harvard Law School and served on Gen. George Patton's staff as a liaison officer in the European theater during World War II. Wilkes returned to Greenville, MS in 1947 first serving as partner in his uncle's law firm, Wilkes & Wilkes, and then serving as Prosecutor for Greenville, MS. He served as Prosecutor for 15 years and was then was elected Judge on the Fourth Circuit Court of Mississippi. Judge Wilkes continued to serve the Fourth Circuit Court of Mississippi without oppositions until his retirement in 1986. Judge Wilkes died in February, 1996. She leaves a brother, Frank A. England, Jr., of Greenville, MS; a daughter, Mrs. Dyer Brainerd Holmes, of Memphis and Wellesley, MA; three grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. The family requests that any memorials be sent to the First Presbyterian Church of Greenville. Boone-Wells Funeral Home 662-335-7111