Rosemary Roberta Lee Pike

Rosemary Roberta Lee Pike, 88, of Hattiesburg, MS, passed away on June 22, 2013 at the UAB Hospital in Birmingham, AL.
Born January 3, 1925 in Memphis, Tennessee, to Will D. and Essie Lee, she was the youngest of six children.
She is preceded in death by Frank Pike, her husband of 66 years; two sisters Lois Inez Lee Flinn and Lillian Essie Lee Perry; and three brothers Robert Eugene Lee, William Joseph Lee, and Walter Hobbs Lee.
Rosemary is survived by her three daughters Pamela (John) Carrubba of Long Beach, Karen (Walter) Smitherman of Hoover, AL and Ellis Anne Smith of Hattiesburg; seven grandchildren Ashlee (Shannon) Anderson, Suzanne (Greg) Jones, Steven Smitherman, Jake Smith, Luke Smith, Kris Smith, and Kurt Smith; two great grandchildren, Whittaker Jones and Elise Jones, and a niece Bettye Jo Powell.
She graduated from Central High School in Memphis, Tennessee in 1942. She sang with the Memphis Open Air Theatre production company for several seasons. She was a bank teller and was employed during World War II with payroll office of the Ferry Command in Memphis, where she met her husband, Staff Sergeant Frank Pike. In the early 1950s, they moved to Camden, Arkansas and in 1959 moved to Bay Saint Louis with their two daughters. The family moved to Long Beach after Hurricane Camille.
She was a longtime resident of the Gulf Coast, but moved to Hattiesburg after Hurricane Katrina. She had always been an active member of her local Baptist church, including First Baptist Church Bay Saint Louis, Long Beach First Baptist Church, and presently at Temple Baptist Church in Hattiesburg. Her activities included Sunday School, women's groups, and Senior Adults' Bible Study.
Well-known for her hostess and culinary skills, she won county fair cooking contests and Daily Herald recipe contests. She loved entertaining her family and friends. She was a homemaker, wife, and loving mother to her three daughters and grandchildren and great grandchildren.
The visitation will be from 11:00 AM until 1:00 PM on Friday, June 28, 2013 at the RIEMANN FAMILY FUNERAL HOME, 19130 Commission Rd, Long Beach. The funeral service will immediately follow with Dr. David Spencer, Milton, Florida officiating. The burial will follow at Gulf Pines Memorial Gardens, Long Beach.
An online obituary may be viewed and memories shared at www.riemannfamily.com.