Lucy Reba Stancil House | Nov. 14, 1925-Sept. 8, 2019

Lucy Reba Stancil House

Born Nov. 14, 1925 Johnston, NC
Died Sept. 8, 2019 Greensboro, NC
Buried in Westminster Gardens in the Westminster Colonial Mausoleum in Greensboro, NC
Married Lawrence Elmo House on March 16, 1946, in Raleigh, NC

My mother — Lucy Reba Stancil House, wife of Lawrence — was born Nov. 14, 1925, in Johnston County, North Carolina, to Julius Nevel Stancil and DeLanie Ethel Stancil Stancil (yes, DeLanie was a “Double Stancil”). Reba was their second daughter and third child.

Her older siblings were Norma Ethel Stancil Moore, wife of Randolph, and George Arnold Stancil, husband of Mary Elizabeth “Lib” Ward.

Reba was the baby of the family and spoke of having an interesting and fun filled childhood. As a preacher’s kid and favorite girl of Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton — Rocky Mount neighbors and family friends — Reba enjoyed church activities and summer traveling with the Hamiltons, who treated her like she was their own daughter. She accompanied them on trips to many cities in the South and introduced her to Florida and Texas.

Reba loved each side of her Stancil Family – her grandparents, numerous aunts and uncles and cousins, and she especially looked forward to family reunions, with wonderful Southern food, fresh lemonade, family humor and a few tall tales!

She began attending school in Johnston County and graduated from high school from Rocky Mount Senior High School in June 1943. Reba and DeLanie went to Wilmington later that summer to visit DeLanie’s brother Emmette and his wife Dessie at the boarding house they owned.

Reba and one of the Stancil’s youngest boarders — who was working in Wilmington for The NC Ship Building Company as a welder on battleships for WWII — were introduced. This handsome young man was Lawrence House who was born and grew up in Knightdale, North Carolina, a farming community on the outskirts of Raleigh.

They dated throughout the rest of the summer and early fall. Lawrence had signed up to become a Marine and was to leave for Parris Island on Nov. 22, 1943. They knew each other for a short amount of time, but their love for one another had continued to grow and before Lawrence left for basic training, he and Reba became engaged!

Reba had entered King’s Business College in Raleigh in September 1943 for a one-year business program.

DeLanie had wanted Reba to go to a four-year college, but with the war in full swing, educational plans often changed for America’s youth. After finishing business school, Reba worked for Carolina Power and Light in Raleigh for three years while waiting for Lawrence to return from overseas.

Lawrence wrote when he could and she treasured every letter. His time spent in service to his country was grueling and treacherous as a sharpshooter and member of a machine gun crew. His Marine division was involved in the battles of Saipan, Tinian, Okinawa and finally in The Occupation of Japan. He was released from The Marines on March 6, 1946, and he and Reba were married by her father on March 16, 1946, in historic downtown Raleigh’s First Baptist Church.

They began their life together in Raleigh. Lawrence — with his knowledge of Metallurgy and two years at State College (N.C. State) studying to become a chemical or civil engineer before joining the war effort — was soon employed by Armco Steel Corp (Middletown, Ohio) in their Raleigh office.

On March 26, 1947, their first child and son — Larry Stancil House — was born. Then on Aug. 2, 1950, their only daughter — Jane Marcia House (wife of Frank Burton) — was born. They remained in Raleigh until April 1952, when Lawrence was transferred to Greensboro, North Carolina.

His boss thought so highly of Lawrence, he wanted him to move into sales with his own territory. Though he traveled every week, the family liked Greensboro and it became their adopted hometown. They joined First Baptist Church, where Reba has continued to be a member for 67 years!

Besides keeping a very clean home and looking after her children, Reba became involved in the arts and in service to others. She was active in her Sunday School class, Church Circle, Garden Club, and joined The Gate City Service League (a Federated Woman’s Club of NC) serving as president in 1974-75.

Their other two sons — Bradley Steven House (Sept. 27, 1958) and Mark Christopher House (Jan. 19, 1961) — were born in Greensboro during their first 10 years in their adopted hometown. Later in life, with her talent for sewing, she completed several specialized sewing courses at Guilford Tech Community College and began to paint in oils.

She loved and had a talent for Interior Design and Fashion. She continued to learn new skills and techniques in hand sewing like crewel embroidery, counted cross stitch embroidery, knitting, and crocheting.

As four granddaughters (Lauren, Amy, Melissa and Jennifer) joined the House Family, their Grandmother Reba, learned hand smocking and made a number of beautiful dresses that were shared by the cute granddaughters. Later, she learned French Hand Sewing Techniques, French Embroidery and lace making.

Busy with work and caring for others, Reba and Lawrence devoted their lives to their children and grandchildren (Bryan Lawrence Burton born Sept. 3, 1989, was their only grandson), their two daughter in-laws and one son-in-law, and their large extended families. Their hearts were full and their hands were busy.

Sadly, major health issues struck Lawrence in 1987. After a 10-year decline, he passed away at age 76 on Aug. 9, 1997. Our Marine had slipped his earthly bonds — Semper Fi. He was so proud of his beautiful wife Reba for taking over and taking such good care of him. They were married for 51 blessed years.

After losing the love of her life, Reba eventually rallied and carried on with her activities and interests. Her health remained stable for many years even through surgeries. Shortly after her 90th birthday, she was hospitalized for an infection that threatened to end her life.

She slowly progressed and went to rehab for six weeks to regain her strength. She was never quite the same afterward, but remained fully sociable and talkative!

Reba remained in her home with care from Mark, Jane and Frank Burton (husband of Jane), and home health care aides until September 2018. Sadly, we had to place her in a skilled nursing facility. She has adapted well and we visit three times a week — returning her clean laundry, socializing, and doing many extra caregiving tasks for her. It certainly will never be like home.

Reba is very tiny now with beautiful white hair and a sweet smile — she is still a beautiful Southern Lady! I’m so glad she was my Mother and I love her very much, as does my husband Frank and our son Bryan.

Reba passed away on Sept. 9, 2019, and is buried in Westminster Gardens in the Westminster Colonial Mausoleum in Greensboro, North Carolina.