Margaret Pierce Rowlett

Margaret Pierce Rowlett transitioned from this life on Thursday, Dec. 01, 2022 in Towson, Maryland.

MARGARET PIERCE ROWLETT was born on July 14, 1933 in Isle of Wight County, VA to the late Buddie Jinks Pierce and Estelle Hardy Pierce. She was one of eight children which included: Her brother, Buddie Jr., who passed in childhood, brother Lawrence Pierce and five sisters, Emily Pierce, Ola Hardy, Bernice Pleasant, Beatrice Maney and Ethel Elias. All proceeded Margaret to Glory. She attended Isle of Wight County Public Schools where during her high school years she was an acclaimed member of the ‘starting five’ of the Girls’ Basketball Team of the Isle of Wight Training School from 1948-1951. She and her teammate Everdean Pierce Maney had similar athletic styles on the court thus, she became known by the nickname ‘Baby Dean’. As the years passed, she went by ‘Dean’. Many members of the Families ‘Descendants still refer to her as Dean, Aunt Dean or Cousin Dean to this very day. She married The Love of Her Life, her late husband, Charles Bailey Rowlett, on October 12, 1950 when she was 17 years old. Side note: Charles just happened to be a brother of Basketball teammate Doris Rowlett (Nash).

Their union was blessed in 1951 by the birth of their first son Jerry Vaughn Rowlett. In 1957, Charles and Dean relocated their family to New Jersey and in 1963, another blessing was bestowed upon them with the birth of their second son, Charles Aaron Rowlett. In 1964, Dean joined the staff at Upsala College, located in East Orange, New Jersey as a Lab Technician. Though she worked outside of the home, she was very active in her sons’ lives. She was an active member of the PTA. She also participated in The Fifth Quarter Club Parents Association which were Boosters of East Orange High School in Jersey. Dean remained a dedicated staff member until her Retirement over thirty years later when the College closed the East Orange Campus. She dedicated her retirement years to raising her 2 grandchildren, Aaron and Tarra, while being heavily involved in their education and extracurricular activities. She most enjoyed her time serving the new generation of Rowlett descendants on the PTA during those years. During her heyday, Dean was a proud and active member of The Red Hat Society. She loved participating in the activities and wearing the finest hats with eye catching Fashion. The Society is a membership-based organization that connects women online and offline and provides them with the tools, opportunities, and discounts they need to experience new and exciting ways to gather. The signature red and/or pink hats with purple accents symbolize a movement of women determined to celebrate every stage of life.

Dean dedicated her life to Christ at an early age and served Him well while on this Earthly plain until she transitioned into eternal rest on December 1, 2022 surrounded by loved ones. When she was physically able, Dean was in the habit of saying her nightly prayers, on her knees, at the side of her bed just as she learned to do as a child. She had a special relationship with the Lord. And, as she prayed, she would call out each of her loved ones by name. She prayed with her entire body. She loved with her entire spirit, and she was a source of comforting light and Grace for so many. She was an active member of New Hope Baptist Church of East Orange while living in New Jersey.

She leaves to cherish her memory, two sons: Jerry V. Rowlett and his wife, Gloria of Essex, MD, Charles Aaron Rowlett and his dedicated partner, Donna Glover of Lumberton NJ.; three grandchildren: Tarra Rowlett of NJ, Aaron Rowlett Jr. and his wife, Sharrissa of NJ, and Temica Rowlett of CA; three bonus grandchildren: Yolonda Grice, Tiana Grice Burrell and Alphonzo ‘Rickey’ Grice. Her oldest grandson Jerry V. Rowlett Jr. aka ‘Jay’, predeceased her in February of 2020. He is on duty welcoming her Home in Heaven. She was also blessed with five great-grandchildren: Ariyan Redd, Sanyah Taylor, Nyla Erin Rowlett, Kaden Avery Rowlett and Alaya Jade Rowlett; and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives, and trusted friends. Those we love don’t go away. They walk beside us every day; Unseen, Unheard, but always near; Still loved, still missed and very dear.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held 10:00am on Saturday, December 10, 2022 at Shivers Funeral Chapel. There will be no public viewing. Interment in Tynes Memorial Cemetery, 200 Berry Hill Road, Smithfield, VA. Please keep the Pierce-Rowlett family in your prayers.