Frankie Sue Abrams Ferrell

Frankie Sue Abrams Ferrell died peacefully at home in the arms of her eldest daughter, Mary Suzanne Miller, and her husband, Dewitt “Jack” Ferrell on Good Friday, April 10th. She was 87 years old. Frankie Sue was a resident of Farragut for the past 8 years. She was a member of the Farragut Presbyterian Church and Trinity United Methodist Church in Athens, Tennessee where she played an important role in the church. She was also a member of BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) for many years. She was very godly and never missed church when she was able. Frankie Sue Abrams was born on January 31st, 1933 in Duncan, Oklahoma. She lost her mother at a very young age and her father when she was just 14. She was then raised by her older sisters and attended Velma Alma High School where she was a cheerleader. After graduation, she acquired her first job as a secretary at a local business. She first met Jack as a result of a blind date initiated by her longtime friend and roommate Gloria. It didn’t take long for her to realize that he was the one for her and they were married on December 9th, 1953 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The honeymoon was short lived however, since Jack was deployed by the Navy soon after their nuptials. Sue lived with Jack’s mother, Mary in Oklahoma City until his return. Their many adventures led them to Edwards Air Force Base in California and continued on to Pensacola, Florida where they had their first two children. They then moved back to California where their third child was born and then they were off again to Miami, Florida. Jack decided a few years later to retire from the Navy and began his new career as a pilot for United Air Lines, which then led the growing family to Denver, Colorado and then on to Chicago, Illinois where their fourth and last child was born. They moved to Knoxville and finally settled in Athens, Tennessee in 1973 where they built a beautiful home on 5 acres. Sue was married to Jack for over 67 years. She raised four wonderful children and cared for them while their father was at sea for a year at a time or off flying commercially for United. She was a typical “Navy wife” who kept the “home fires” burning for Jack by taking exceptional care of their home and family. Sue was a skilled seamstress and often made beautiful clothes for herself and her children. She loved to garden and certainly had a green thumb, for everything she touched flourished. She had a beautiful singing voice and would often be heard throughout the house whistling and singing hymns and other favorites. Frankie Sue is survived by her husband, Jack Ferrell, who adored her, and her loving children, Mary Suzanne Miller (Tom) of Knoxville; Michael Ashley Ferrell (Debbie) of Merritt Island, Florida; Melissa Elizabeth McCoy (Jeff) of Knoxville; Megan Allison Burns (Bill) of Newnan, Georgia. She is also survived by several nieces and nephews in the Oklahoma and Texas regions. She had eight grandchildren and five great grandchildren with one on the way. Frankie Sue’s family deeply misses her and it will be hard to fill the void that she has left in their lives. For the last couple of weeks she had expressed to her family that she wanted to go home and she left this world to enter Heaven on Good Friday. A public memorial servicing honoring Frankie will be held at a later date. Online condolences at www.rosemortuary.com

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Frankie Sue Abrams Ferrell

January 31, 1933 - April 10, 2020