Miss Nicie — 100 Years and Counting
Miss Nicie Lambeth is shown here being greeted by one of many who turned out at Bethlehem AME Zion Church to celebrate her 100th birthday.
Celebration
Miss Nicie Lambeth is 100 years old — and her friends won’t let her forget it! Eager to show their love and appreciation, they gave her a grand Celebration/Roast this past Sunday, February 22, at Bethlehem AME Zion Church in Lewisville.
The church was filled with friends, church members, former church members and pastors who came to pay tribute to “Miss Nicie,” as they affectionately call her. They expressed their love in song, poem, recollections, Scripture and prayer. They praised her, thanked her, and laughed with her at some of their fondest memories of her.
Following the Celebration/Roast, Miss Nicie was treated to a warm reception in the Fellowship Hall.
Proclamation
Earlier, on February 12, the Town of Lewisville proclaimed the “Miss Nicie Ophelia Lambeth Day” and presented Miss Nicie with a plaque describing the proclamation:
Whereas: The Town of Lewisville wishes to recognize its senior citizens and the important role they serve in our society; and
Whereas: Miss Lambeth was born on February 18, 1909 in Pfafftown and has been a lifelong resident of the area; and
Whereas: Longevity of life is a blessing for an individual and for a community which benefits from the knowledge, creativity, and experiences this individual brings to all; and
Whereas: During a long, productive lifetime, Miss Lambeth has demonstrated her dedication to the welfare of others in countless ways and has earned the respect and affection of people from all walks of life and all ages; and
Whereas: Miss Lambeth has lived during the most eventful century of this world’s history;
NOW THEREFORE, I, Dan R. Pugh, Mayor of the Town of Lewisville, North Carolina, do hereby proclaim February 18, 2009, as Miss Nicie Ophelia Lambeth Day in the Town of Lewisville to recognize and acknowledge the one hundredth birthday of Miss Nicie O. Lambeth on the day of this occasion.
Miss Nicie, we wish you many more years, as fruitful as your first 100!
More Photos
To see more photos of Miss Nicie’s Celebration/Roast and Reception, please visit the Nicie Lambeth Celebration photo gallery.
NOTE: The 2/19/09 edition of the Winston-Salem Journal featured an article, titled 100th Birthday, by Lisa O’Donnell, describing various stages of Miss Nicie’s rich life. Be sure to check out that article, as well as an accompanying audio recording in which you can hear Miss Nicie recite from memory a portion of Longfellow’s A Psalm of Life.
UPDATE ON 11/4/09: Miss Nicie Lambeth passed away on Saturday, October 24, 2009. Loved ones spoke highly of her kind heart and her love for the Lord. The Winston-Salem Journal published a 10/29/09 article on Miss Nicie’s passing titled Vienna loses beloved historian.
The Tie That Binds
Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love;
The fellowship of kindred minds is like to that above.
— “Blest Be the Tie That Binds”
Three congregations came together Wednesday evening at Bethlehem AME Zion Church for a Community Thanksgiving Eve Service.
The visiting congregants came from Brookstown United Methodist Church and Olivet Moravian Church. Some of them became part of the combined choir, while others found their place of worship alongside each other in the pews.
Reverend Doug Rights, from Olivet, shared a scripture and the opening prayer; and Reverend Chip Webb, from Brookstown, gave the Thanksgiving Eve message. Administering communion was Bethlehem’s pastor, Reverend Beverly McMillian.
Across the congregation, the faces were black, white, young and not-so-young. Yet though diverse in many ways, they were united in worship, communion and fellowship.
To see more photos of the service, as well as a few photos taken in the fellowship hall, please visit the Bethlehem AME Zion Church photo gallery. At the end of the gallery, there’s a close-up of a very gracious lady, a member of Bethlehem AME Zion Church, who is 99 years old.
