Margene Smith Mitchell

On September 26, 2025, Margene Mitchell entered peacefully into the loving arms of her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ at the age of 92. A life well-lived and well-loved, Margene’s journey was one marked by unwavering faith, steady devotion, and a servant’s heart that reflected Christ in both word and deed.

Born on May 15, 1933, in Philadelphia, Mississippi, Margene was the beloved daughter of Lon Smith and Mattie Ethel Warren Smith of Union, Mississippi. From her earliest days, she was raised in the rich soil of faith and family foundation that carried her through every season of life.

She attended Boyle High School in Cleveland, Mississippi, where she played basketball and first began cultivating her lifelong love of sports. Born into a farming family, she learned the value of hard work while helping in the fields, picking cotton, and gathering vegetables. More importantly, during those early years, Margene accepted Jesus Christ as her Savior — a decision that became the cornerstone of her life.

At just 18, she married her beloved Clifton W Mitchell Sr., and began the adventure of marriage in Coronado, California, where Clifton served in the Navy. A few years later, they returned to Mississippi, where Margene worked at Baxter Laboratories and later at Mohawk Rug Company in Greenville. In 1957, the Mitchells moved to Orange, Texas, seeking opportunity and building their family. There, they joined Calvary Baptist Church in West Orange — a church family she loved deeply. She poured her heart into ministry as a Sunday School teacher, nursery worker, choir member, and leader in the Girls’ Auxiliary, serving faithfully in every season.

Margene was endlessly creative, and her hands were seldom still. She was an accomplished seamstress, gardener, and homemaker. She loved sewing, crocheting, cooking, planting, and sharing the fruits of her labor with others. Her handiwork was never just a skill but an offering — an expression of love, a way of serving, a reflection of her generous heart.

She had a joy for music and for worship, often singing in church and choir, and she loved to encourage others with both her voice and her words. If you sat beside her in church — usually in the second or third pew from the front — she might lean over and share a scribbled note from her Bible or a thought the Lord had pressed on her heart. Whether tender encouragement or firm truth, she spoke with grace and conviction, always pointing others to Jesus.

Margene also carried a lifelong love of sports. She could be found late at night watching games with a Coke and a straw in hand, and she was a faithful supporter of every local team her children, grandchildren, or great-grandchildren played on. From the bleachers or from her living room, she cheered with joy and loyalty.

Another of her passions was reading. Margene would read anything she could get her hands on. Often beside her chair were bird magazines, quilting magazines, thumbed through Bible studies, and scraps of fabric, evidence of how her love for learning was always intertwined with her love for creating.

Her life was also marked by courage. At the age of 80, Margene faced breast cancer and walked through years of treatment with grace, determination, and an unshakable trust that Jesus would see her through — and He did.

Margene’s greatest joy, however, was her family. She faithfully poured her love and prayers into each one, pointing them always to the goodness of Jesus. She is survived by her loving husband, Clifton W Mitchell Sr.; sister, Aomia Elaine Smith Rigdon; her children, Clifton W. Mitchell Jr. (Donna), Kenneth W. Mitchell, and Beverly Mitchell Frederick (Billy). She leaves a legacy in her grandchildren: Sarah Black, Rachael Mitchell, Rebekah Mitchell, Hannah Paizis, Emily Mitchell, Olivia Mitchell, Valerie Mitchell, Laney Luckie, Lauren Struwe, and Lia Parker, as well as her thirteen great-grandchildren: Jordyn, Jakson, Jude, Everlee, Judson, Josiah, Esther, Priscilla, Lola, Solomon, Liv, Brice, and Kane. Each one carries with them her prayers, her stories, and her example of steadfast love.

She is preceded in death by her parents; her sister, Gatha Nell Smith Hegwood; and her brothers, Amzie Lafayette Smith, Herman Lavan Smith, Elmer Clyde Smith, Lonnie Warren Smith, and James Lamar Smith.

To know Margene was to be loved by her, and to be loved by her was to be drawn closer to Christ. She embodied the words of Proverbs 31: “Her children rise up and call her blessed… a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.” Though she has now gone home, her faith and example remain etched in the hearts of all who were blessed to know her.

A visitation will be held from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., Monday, September 29, 2025, at Calvary Baptist Church in West Orange. Funeral services for Margene will be held on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. at Calvary Baptist Church in West Orange, Texas, with Pastor Jeff Bell and Pastor Emeritus David Millner officiating. Interment will follow at Orange Forest Lawn Cemetery.

The family would like to extend their heartfelt gratitude to Southeast Texas Hospice. Chanet, Ebony, Sabrina, Yvette and several staff members cared for her during the last tender days of her life as they would care for their own loved ones. Your kind service to her multiplied love onto us, and we will forever be grateful to you all.

“Well done, good and faithful servant… enter into the joy of your Lord” (Matthew 25:23).