Edna Ward

On July 19, 1941, Edna Mae Ward made her
debut into the world in Bessemer, Alabama. She
was the daughter of Mrs. Lealer Ward and Mr.
Hershfield Ward. Mr. Hershfield transitioned
while Edna was a young child and she went on to
be her mother's pride and joy.
She matriculated through the Bessemer City
school system, where she graduated Dunbar
High School in 1959. She went on to receive
her bachelor's degree from the University
of Alabama, Birmingham. After graduation,
she began her career at the Census Bureau
in Washington D.C. After being promoted
a few times, she eventually transferred to
the Social Security Administration branch in
Birmingham, Al. While working at SSA, she
received numerous awards, including the
Commissioner Citation, the highest award that
you could receive at the time. During her time
there, she held many positions which included
Claims Health Specialist, Benefit Authorizer,
Claims Representative, Authorizer of Complex
Entitlement Determinations, and training
assistant for new employees. She eventually
retired after 421/2 years of service, countless
number of friendships, and beautiful memories
engraved in her heart.
She gave her life to Christ at an early age and
joined Macedonia Baptist Church in 1960, where
she has continued to serve as an active and loyal
member for over 60 years. She enjoyed working
with the youth and the young members of the
church loved her. She volunteered her time
with the Northside Youth Center and served as
a counselor and treasurer for the Beverly Brown
Youth Choir for over forty years. Her Macedonia
family was an intricate part of her life and
brought her much joy.
Edna was also a huge advocate for every
citizen utilizing their voice and exercising their rights to vote. She worked tirelessly in support
of Federal, State, and local elections - collecting
absentee ballots and carrying voters to the
polls. She was usually hard to find on election
night because she was working at the official
headquarters, ensuring that every vote was
counted appropriately.
Edna had a huge heart, loved people, loved
spending time with family and friends, and
LOVED traveling. She had an infectious laugh.
She often laughed until she cried and had
everyone else around her laughing too.
God called upon his angel on earth to return
home on the morning of October 15, 2023. She
is preceded in death by her parents, Mrs. Lealer
Ward and Mr. Hershfield Ward, her brothers
Richard and Tommy (Linda) Spencer, Jr., and
her sister Mrs. Marguerite Jones and two of
her favorite cousins, Bettye Alford and James
Harrison.
Having departed this life, she leaves to cherish
her memories, her niece-daughter, Robyn (Terry)
Watson; niece, Tonya (Pernell) Allen; nephews,
Thomas (Rickie) Davis, Tommy (Stefanie) Spencer
III, Richard Williams, Richard Spencer, and
Reginald Spencer; a host of great nieces and
nephews; two special cousins, Phyllis Harrison
and Al Harrison; dear friend Dorothy Little, loving
god-daughter Felicia Bryant and the Bryant/Little
family. She also leaves a host of other relatives
and extremely loving friends who will miss her
dearly.