Eva Mae Hodgin Lovett: Tabor City
1933 – 2026
With heavy hearts we announce the passing of Eva Mae Hodgin Lovett of Tabor City, loving mother of three daughters and devoted wife of the late Liston “Dick” Lovett. She was 92.
Eva Mae was born Nov. 29, 1933, on the family farm in Horry County. She was the oldest of two children born to Jessie Delbert and Curley (Buffkin) Hodgin. She attended elementary school at a country one-room schoolhouse where she and her brother walked to school each day. Later she attended Fair Bluff High School where she played guard on the high school basketball team.
Eva Mae and Dick started dating in high school and during her senior year they eloped and kept their marriage a secret so that Eva Mae could continue to play for the remainder of the basketball season. After graduation she and Dick moved to the Cherry Grove community where they purchased a farm and started a family. They dedicated their life to tending the land, raising crops, and caring for their three daughters with unwavering devotion. They raised their girls with a strong work ethic, teaching them to face life’s challenges with determination, resilience, and pride.
Eva Mae took her faith very seriously. As a young girl, she accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior. She and Dick joined the Cherry Grove Baptist Church where they were lifetime members. She enjoyed singing in the church choir, participating in the Women’s Circle Club, and attending Sunday school. She often spoke of the friendships that she built in that class and the impact that these ladies had on her life.
Outside of farming, Eva Mae found joy in spending time with family and friends, attending church events and planting a vegetable garden that fed the family year- round. In addition to harvesting vegetables, she and her mom could be found in the kitchen canning pickles and making homemade jam from figs that she grew on the farm. In the fall she would gather pecans from her pecan trees and pass along to loved ones. She was also a lifelong lover of basketball that started when she played in high school. She loved watching any type of basketball on television. It didn’t matter what team was playing; she just loved the sport. She even got to watch a few NC State Wolfpack games in person.
Being a devoted wife, mother and grandmother was one of the most important parts of Eva’s life, a role that gave her a lot of pride and joy. She was known as Mema to her grandkids, and she never missed a ball game, recital, talent show, birthday, or any special event in their lives. Eva’s beautiful life will forever be cherished in the lives of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Eva Mae was predeceased by her husband Liston “Dick” Lovett, parents Curley Buffkin Hodgin and Jessie Delbert Hodgin, and brother J.D. Hodgin.
She is survived by her daughter, Debbie Lovett Bowden (Loyd) of Wilmington; daughters Pixie Lovett Grainger of Wake Forest and Jill Lovett Starnes, (Brad) of Fuquay-Varina; granddaughters Jeffriann Grainger Cauthen (Rob) of Wake Forest and Jensen Starnes Castelloe (Mike) of Fuquay-Varina; grandsons Trey Bowden (Amanda) of Wilmington and Andrew Starnes of Nashville, Tennessee; great-grandchildren Evelyn Bowden, Mirabelle Bowden, LC Bowden; and great-great grandchildren Sawyer Cauthen, Liston Castelloe, and Lowen Castelloe.
Family would like to express their deepest thanks to the staff at Liberty Health and Rehab in Wilmington for their love, kindness, and support during the last year of her life.
Funeral services were held at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 7, at Cherry Grove Baptist Church. Burial followed in the Cherry Grove Baptist Church Cemetery.
Friends and family were invited to send flowers or make a donation in Eva Mae’s memory to Cherry Grove Baptist Church.
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