Martha Hopper Poston, 86, of Social Circle, Georgia passed Thursday, October 20, 2022. The family will receive friends from 11:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Tuesday, November 1, 2022, at The Church of Latter-Day Saints located at 4751 Hwy. 14 Eden, NC. The funeral service will begin at 12:00 p.m. Internment will follow in Eden Gardens Cemetery, Eden, NC.
Martha Ann Hopper Poston, quietly departed this earthly life on Thursday morning, October 20, 2022, at The Gardens of Social Circle in Social Circle, Georgia. The youngest child of Charlie Hopper and Cornelia Leisure Hopper, Martha was predeceased by her parents and siblings: Edna Cleo Hagwood (Robert), Gertrude Galloway (James), Hattie Smith (James), Samuel Ernest Hopper, Edward Hopper, Beatrice Burnette, Allen Hopper, and two infant siblings. She is survived by her sisters: Flora Rogers and Maggie Poston, both of Brooklyn, New York; and a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives, and friends. Martha was born, reared, and educated in the public schools of Eden, North Carolina (formerly Leaksville). Martha graduated from Douglas High School. After her graduation from high school, Martha married Smith Raphael Poston. After the couple divorced in 1968, Martha continued to pursue her educational goals. She received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Home Economics Education from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in Greensboro, North Carolina. During her marriage and while she attended college, Martha delighted in her position in the monogramming department in Anchor Department Store in Winston-Salem, N.C.
After her graduation from college, Martha joined the Peace Corps in 1972. She served in rural Jamaica as an Area Extension Officer for two years before transferring to Monrovia, Liberia in West Africa. Martha felt that she was answering her calling as she helped improve the living conditions of those living in poverty in these countries. She lived among the people and used the skills she learned as a Home Economics major to teach about childcare, nutrition, sewing, and good health practices. She remained in Africa until the Liberian military coup and assassination of Liberian President Tolbert in 1980. Martha shared experiences from her years in the Peace Corps in her book, In the Service of My God.
When Martha returned to the United States, she lived with her sister, Hattie Smith, in High Point, N.C. She assisted her sister in caring for her mother until her mother’s death in 1984. During this time, Martha was prompted by a dream to seek a better understanding of eternity and God’s plan for her life. She was baptized in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on May 1, 1983.
After her mother’s death, Martha moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where she served in the Atlanta Temple for 24 years. She was very active in her church, participating in many temple dedications and singing in a choir that took her throughout the world. Her final service mission was in the Church History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah in 2012. This was a perfect fit for Martha because she was an avid genealogy researcher, and much of our family history research can be attributed to her. She continued to faithfully serve her church until her health declined. Martha will be remembered as a fashionista with a unique style and flair, for her youthful spirit, for her love for her family, for her zest for life, and as a world traveler. Most importantly, she will be remembered for her love for her Heavenly Father. Although she will be missed, her life and legacy will live on.
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