Mary Ann Branner
Mary Ann Branner, 98, passed away on Sunday, April 23, 2023 at Westminster Canterbury in Richmond, VA.
She was born September 18, 1924 to Edward R. and Ethel (Holmes) Sumpter, in Columbia, SC and moved to Atlanta, GA. In her teen years, she would occasionally model for fashion articles for the Atlanta Journal and Constitution. Hiking up Stone Mountain for a picnic lunch with friends was a favorite activity. After attending the University of Georgia, she enjoyed working as a stewardess for Delta Airlines. On one flight, the plane's landing gear was stuck in the up position, and the plane was circling the airport repeatedly. She began to pray and continued in prayer until the landing gear unstuck and the plane landed safely. Later in life, she led bus tours for the Metro Richmond Visitors Center in Richmond, VA, her loved hometown for many years, where she was a member of St. Matthew's Episcopal Church.
Mary Ann was an adventurous spirit, who loved big band and swing music and attended social events featuring greats like Benny Goodman, the "King of Swing" and Gene Krupa. She was a great dancer, and in her seventies once surprised a showman who chose her and others from the crowd at Bush Gardens. They danced a flawless, flashy polka adding increasingly complicated moves as he realized her level of skill, until the other volunteers simply dropped out to watch and applaud with the audience. She loved to tell stories about summers on her uncle's farm in Tennessee, and swimming with gar fish in San Antonio River and in the lakes of Wisconsin with her grandparents. Once when she was spending a few weeks in Alaska with a friend whose husband was away on an Air Force mission, she got trapped in the outhouse by a grizzly bear that was hanging out between it and the cabin.
Mary Ann loved the beach and all it offered to nourish the mind and soul. She enjoyed the sunshine and sand at every opportunity. She also cherished her Richmond prayer partners and ministered in the jail system on occasion.
Mary Ann is survived by children Carole Heatwole of Grottoes, Adair Branner of Roanoke, Wade (Elizabeth) Branner of Lexington; grandchildren Aaron Heatwole, Amy (Scott) Wenger, Mandy (Chris) Toliver, Mary (Manny) Fisher, Harrison Branner, Margaret Branner, and five great-grandchildren, Jordan Fisher, Harlem Toliver, Uriah Fisher, Clayton Heatwole and Genevieve Heatwole.
In addition to her parents, Mary Ann was preceded in death by her son-in-law, Wayne (Carole) Heatwole, and her granddaughter-in-law, Tracey (Aaron) Heatwole.
A graveside service for the family will be held at Lacey Spring Cemetery in May. Online condolences may be sent to the family at johnsonfs.com. Arrangements are entrusted to Johnson Funeral and Cremation Service in Grottoes.
