Nicie Ophelia Lambeth, who memorized Bible verses while dusting and sweeping the homes of her employers, died Saturday, a few months shy of her 101st birthday.
Lambeth died not far from her childhood home in the Vienna community, where she spent most of her life.
Last year, in honor of her 100th birthday, the town of Lewisville proclaimed Feb. 19, 2009, Miss Nicie Ophelia Lambeth Day.
Shortly after Mayor Dan Pugh read the proclamation at a meeting of the town council, Lambeth stood and recited six of the nine stanzas of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's A Psalm of Life.
As her recitation continued, the smiles on the faces of the council members and mayor grew wider. When she finished, everyone in the room stood and clapped.
In an interview in February, Lambeth said that when she was a domestic worker, she would ask her employers if she could read their Bible. She would read a few verses, then commit them to memory while cleaning.
She worked until she was 91.
Juanita Tatum, a longtime friend, said that Lambeth's health began to decline over the summer. Up until then, she continued to drive her Buick to the bank and grocery stores.
"We've really lost a historian. We've lost a mother and a friend," Tatum said. "She was just phenomenal. She loves this community and loved people."
Lambeth moved north during World War II to find factory work. She helped install engines in Corsairs and later made radios for General Electric. She moved back to Vienna in the early 1960s to care for an ailing sister.
Lambeth was active in her church, Bethlehem AME Zion Church, singing in the choir and serving on various committees.
Her funeral will be at 1 p.m. today at the church, 6475 Yadkinville Road. Burial will be in the church cemetery.
lodonnell@wsjournal.com.
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