Margaret Lois Kimmer

Mrs. Margaret Lois Kimmer (nee Preston) of Holly Springs, GA went to be with the Lord on the evening of Sunday, February 19th, 2023, at the age of 80. Lois Kimmer was born in 1942 in Hopewell, Virginia, the first child to Rev WW Preston and wife Annie Laurie Preston. As the child of missionaries, most of her early childhood was spent in Brazil (where her brother Billy Preston, Jr. was born in Sao Paulo in 1949). When she was 12, the family returned from Brazil and lived in Montreat, North Carolina. When she was a young teenager, the Prestons moved to Selma, AL where they lived on what she called the “wrong side of the tracks.” At age 16 she became a Sunday School teacher and also served as the treasurer of the Presbyterian Youth. In the middle of her junior year of high school, the family moved to Belle Glade, Florida. Although they lived in the area for only a little over one year, Lois had many happy memories from this time. She enjoyed the Home Economics class (which was a requirement for female students to graduate) and participated in a beauty pageant. After graduating in the Summer of 1961, her first job was looking after a missionary couple’s child who spoke only Swahili. She considered becoming a missionary, but remembered for the rest of her life what she was told when she went to the mission board office: “You have no college. You go home and get married and have children.” The family then moved to South Florida so that her father could take a teaching job in Palm Beach Gardens. During this time the family attended church services at Bethesda By the Sea in Palm Beach. Lois took a job at Burdines working as a bridal consultant. She enjoyed the job, and was given excellent reviews by secret shoppers. In 1963, Lois worked at a toy store on Worth Avenue in Palm Beach. The Kennedys were customers there, and Lois was working there on the day of the assassination. In the mid 60’s, Lois attended Palm Beach Community College, where she especially enjoyed the courses on archery, applied logic, “modern” math, biology, and physical science. In the late 60’s she was working at North Palm Elementary in South Florida. Also in the late 60’s, she met a “boring” man who was so thin that she feared he was afflicted with a “rare tropical disease.” In 1968 she married this man, Robert Kimmer at Lakeside United Methodist Church in Lake Worth. While attending the church, Lois delivered baby booties and church brochures to new mothers. Lois and Bob purchased their first home on Fernwood Drive in nearby West Palm Beach, Florida. The next year, Lois and her husband began hosting a college and career group for Memorial Presbyterian Church in West Palm Beach. It was here that they met lifelong family friend Clarence Noble. In 1972, the couple had their first son: Robert Arnold Kimmer III. Then in 1977: John Calvin Kimmer. Throughout the 70’s, Lois Kimmer and her husband were active members of Lake Osborne Presbyterian Church (under Pastor Lynn Downing) in Lake Worth, FL. Also during this time, Lois was a volunteer tour guide at the Flagler museum in Palm Beach. In the 80’s, Lois taught 2nd grade at Victory Baptist School. She later became the librarian at Seacrest Christian School in Delray. In the summer of 1991 the family (including the dog, a rabbit, an elderly cat, two very young kittens, and several turtles) made a 700 mile move from South Florida to North Georgia. Lois Kimmer and her husband became members of New Covenant Bible Church in Canton in 1992. It was at this church that she made two lifelong friends: Linda Spruill and Donna Early. Lois Kimmer enjoyed American history and genealogy. She was a long time member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and of Colonial Dames. She was a member of the Southern Order of Storytellers. For the past few years, Lois Kimmer and her husband attended Hickory Road Baptist in Canton, where they became friends with Phil Mornault and his wife. As a mother, Lois Kimmer taught her two sons about having good manners, being kind and polite to everyone (regardless of race, religion, socio-economic background, etc), cooking, spiritual values, patriotism, and respect for the elderly. Her sons remember her as a kind, considerate, caring mother who always made everyone feel welcomed in her home. Lois is preceded in death by her husband of 52 years, Mister Robert “Bob” Kimmer (who passed on December 1st, 2020). She is also preceded in death by her niece Nancy Preston, and by three of her close friends Judy Canyas, Therese Burritt, and Linda Spruill. Lois Kimmer is survived by her two sons: Rob Kimmer III (wife Kristie) and family of Canton and Reverend JC Kimmer (wife Melissa) and family of Senegal. Sister Anne Preston Pierce and brother in law William “Bill” Pierce of Virginia. Brother William “Billy” Warrington Preston, Sr. and sister in law Elda Preston of California. Sister Priscilla Preston of South Carolina. Nephews Everett Pierce, William Preston III, David Hardage, and Stephen McQuown. Nieces Laura Pierce Ingram and Diana Preston Petrik. and her late husband’s beloved little dog Shu-Shu. A graveside service will be held on Thursday (February 23, 2023) afternoon at 3pm at the cemetery at Landmark Baptist Church (located at 1574 Marble Quarry Road in Canton). Later that day at 6pm a memorial service will be held at Hickory Road Baptist Church (located at 2146 Hickory Road in Canton). In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her memory to the Hope Center located in Woodstock, Georgia at 295 Molly Lane Suite 120. A very special thanks goes to her devoted caregiver Kristie Hollingworth who was at her side when she breathed her last breath. Additional thanks goes to the attentive staff and friendly residents of Cedarhurst Assisted Living in Canton. The caring staff of Darby Funeral Home is honored to serve the Kimmer family.

Tributes

Margaret Lois Kimmer

October 9, 1942 - February 19, 2023