Martha F Sawyer

Martha F. Sawyer was born in West Virginia on August 1, 1931, the daughter of Robert E. and Mae Shelton Forlines. She shared the same birthday with her husband of 60 years, James Richard Sawyer, Sr., whom she married on March 26, 1955. Martha, nicknamed “Diddy,” lived in Florida from the time she moved there in the second grade until she relocated to Mississippi in 2017. She was baptized in her youth and was later confirmed in the Lutheran Church after meeting her future husband. They both loved opera, traveling, and being active in the Church. Martha was blessed to have and raise four children, by whom she is survived, Martha S. Herbert (Peter), James Richard Sawyer, Jr. (Carolyn), David S. Sawyer (Lynn), and Jonathan E. Sawyer, Sr. (Andrea). She cherished her grandchildren, Christina Herd, Jessica Sawyer, Nicholas Herbert, Emily Holder, Jonathan Sawyer, Mariah Sawyer, and her two great grandchildren, Anna Kate Herd and Timothy Holder. Martha was a member of the National League of American Pen Women, and was a former Lakeland Ledger writer of Polk’s Past and Historic Homes. A gathering of family and friends will begin at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, July 21, 2018, with a celebration of life to follow at 11:00 a.m. at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Lakeland. Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord.

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