Charlie Brooks Higginbotham, Sr

Charlie Brooks Higginbotham, Sr., affectionally known as “Brooks” to his family and friends, age 97, passed away at his home in Shuqualak, MS and entered through Heaven’s Gates on December 22, 2019.

A funeral service is planned for Saturday, December 28, 2019 at Shuqualak Baptist Church at 1 p.m.  Interment was in Butler Cemetery. Visitation will be held at the church, Friday, from 5-7 p.m.  In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to LeBonheur Children’s Hospital, 848 Adams Ave., Memphis, TN  38103 or St. Jude Children’s Hospital, 262 Danny Thomas Place, Memphis, TN  38105.

Brooks was born on October 3, 1922 in the Gholson/Hashuqua community of Noxubee County the son of the late Willie Kellis and Willie Leona Clark Higginbotham.  Brooks was born one of 8 children and is the last of his siblings to enter through Heaven’s Gates.  In addition to his parents and siblings, he was preceded in death by his wife of 76 years, Ernestine Higginbotham who passed away April 17, 2019, a stillborn son Ronald, and his daughter and son- in-law, Lou and Tom Hannah.

He is survived by three children, Carolyn (Junior) Jones, Charlie (Merl) Higginbotham and Cindy (Ralph) Skipper, all of Shuqualak, MS.  He has nine Grandchildren, Charlotte Conner, Dawn (James) Harlow, Al (Kim) Hannah, Jonathan Hannah, Tyler (Amy) Higginbotham, Kendrick (Erik) Adams, Candice (Chip) Hines, Kellis Moore, Tony (B.J.) Moore.  He leaves fourteen Great Grand Children, Maria (Tyler) Walton, Boddie Harlow, Austin Hannah, Katie Rose (Casey) Ricks, Maridee (Stephen) Robertson, Sadie Higginbotham, Sophie Hines, Sam Hines, Isabella Moore, Sawyer Ross, Chaffin Upchurch, Isaac Adams, William Walton and Sutton Adams.  He is also survived by Four Great-Great Grandchildren, Conner Walton, Zander Walton, Anna Tyler and Butler Brooks Ricks; and his sister-in-law, Mary Coleman of Shuqualak, MS and numerous nieces and nephews that he loved like his own.

Brooks attended an elementary school close by his home walking several miles each way to and from the school.  He later went to a boarding school in Mashulaville, MS where he milked two cows twice a day for his room and board.  He tells the story that on the last day of school that he told the principle that he was through milking the cows but they refused to give him his certificate until he milked them one last time.

At the age of 19, he met his bride, Ernestine Coleman who was only 15 when they were married in Mashulaville, MS on August 1, 1942.  Brooks was a United States Army Veteran having served during World War II.  While serving his country, Brooks was stationed at Fort Monroe in Hampton, Virginia where he worked on building and planting mines to protect the waters from Chesapeake Bay up to New York City.  He was very proud to serve his country and loved telling stories about the three mine planting ships that he worked on, the Maybach, Bondy and the Ricker and how he lost his finger while stationed in Fort Buchanan Puerto Rico.  He may not have been a hero in the eyes of the Army, there is no greater hero in the eyes of his family.   After his Army days, he and his wife and two daughters, Carolyn and Thelma (Lou) bought a home and land in the Butler Community of Noxubee County where they lived and worked hard on their farm planting cotton and raising cows.  During those years, their family grew with a son, Charlie B. Higginbotham, Jr and a daughter Cindy.  In February 1957, they moved into their new home in Shuqualak, MS and this continued to be his home until his dying day. A few years after they moved to Shuqualak, He built a small country store in front of their home.  Mama tended to the store while he was on his mail route each day.  He became a member of Shuqualak Baptist Church shortly after moving to Shuqualak and later became a deacon.  He loved his church and it saddened him greatly when he had to stop attending approximately ten years ago due to his arthritis pain and poor hearing. During his lifetime, he had several jobs which included farming, surveying cotton for the ASCS of Noxubee County and later he became a Rural Letter Carrier for the United States Postal Service, serving the Post Office in Gholson until it closed.  He then transferred to the Post Office in Louisville, MS, where he served the residents of the Ellison Ridge Community of Winston County until he retired in 1979 after 35 years!  He was member of the Masonic Lodge for over 70 years.

For several years he was a master frame builder for the Shuqualak Hobby Shop.  He was also an avid and accomplished vegetable gardener and an avid outdoorsman who loved to hunt and fish.  His family would describe him as a Jack and Master of all trades!  His work always proved that he was a perfectionist who never left a task half done!  He was also pretty good at telling jokes.  He always had a quick comeback.  For instance, His wife, Ernestine never liked his driving and one day as he was driving along and she was fussing about his driving and he told her, “Look Ernestine, I can drive with one finger!” Needless to say, she reached over and popped him on his arm and told him that he better put all his fingers on that steering wheel or she would just stay at home from now on!  On a family trip to Nashville several years ago, we were attending a dinner show and the entertainer ask the audience if there was anyone there that had been married more than 60 years and of course daddy raised his hand.  The entertainer ask daddy what he would contribute their long marriage to?  Without hesitation daddy replied, “Lots of patience and learning how to lie!”  The audience broke out in laughter and Mama just smiled but we would find out later that she gave him a pretty good kick under the table.  Daddy had a subtle way of giving advice.  He would tell anyone who would ask for his advice, “Now I don’t know how you plan on doing this but if it was me, I would do it this way!” Daddy learned at a young age how to survive and endure pain and hardship.  At ten years old, his mule, Old Babe, kicked him and broke his left leg in to.  There was no doctor close by and no pain medicine so his mother made a splint out of barn wood and used strips of cloth to wrap it the best way she could. He wore that splint for many months until it healed.  He always credited the good Lord and his mother’s tender loving care that helped him to heal completely with no limp.  In his later years, he received the most enjoyment from spending time with his family and telling stories of years gone by!  He was a master storyteller and his family hung on to every word he would tell no matter how many times we had heard it before.

Daddy was a wonderful husband.  He raised his children in a loving Christian home.  He demonstrated to all who knew him how a Christian should live their life and to always put God first above anything else.  Daddy was a man of high morals and ethical character and he often said that a man’s character and his integrity is all that he will leave behind.  The love that he gave to his family was unmeasurable! He was always so thankful and gracious to anyone that helped him.  Even in his final days, when he was so tired, so sick and weak, he continued to show us grace and love!

Daddy, tell Mama that we miss her and we can’t wait until the day that we are all together again! Oh what a glorious day that will be! You will always be loved and missed and you will always be our Hero!