Violet Arbelle (Mathis) Long

Violet Arbelle (Mathis) Long, was born on Mother’s Day, May 13, 1923 in Wright County, Missouri. She was the first of six children born to Virgil Lee and Harriet Ethel (Smith) Mathis. She departed this life on October 6, 2012 in Kabul Nursing Home, in Cabool, Missouri. She went to meet her Savior and to be reunited with her beloved husband of 73 years, Luel, that she missed so very much. They were united in marriage on December 21, 1938 in Harrisonville, Missouri. Three children were born to this union.

Violet was saved and baptized at an early age and was a faithful follower of the Lord. She attended church as long as her health permitted.
She was a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. She believed there was no higher calling than this. She taught her family to love God and live their lives in a way that would be pleasing to Him.

Violet’s love of music was evident since the age of three, when her mother told how she would stand on a stump and sing with all her might. She played guitar and fiddle, and sang in church and at other local functions. She had her own little band for a few years called, “The Ozark Mountain Gang.” In her golden years, she was thrilled when she got to record in Nashville with some of the members of Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys. She recorded her last CD there at age 80.

She was an accomplished seamstress, designing some of her own clothes while still in her teens. She was a wonderful cook, and was especially known for her chicken and dumplings and cinnamon rolls.

Besides her parents and loving husband, Luel, she was preceded in death by her precious daughter: Linda Holland; and by a brother: Fay Mathis.

She is survived by her son: Vernon Long and his wife, Virginia; her daughter: Connie Dake and her husband, Junior, all of Mtn Grove; a son-in- law: Derek Holland of Lee’s Summit, Missouri; her grandchildren: Lynn Long and his wife, Sheila, of Mtn Grove, Vicki Johnson and her husband, Greg, of West Plains, Missouri, Tim Dake of Springfield, Missouri, Rebekah Dowden and her husband, Kyle, of Springfield, Missouri, Jamey Holland and his wife, Melissa, and Ben Holland, all of Lee’s Summit, Missouri; ten great-grandchildren; three great-great-granddaughters; one brother: Ray Mathis and his wife, Bessie, of Mtn. Grove; three sisters: Eva Mayfield and her husband, Bill, Ann Arnall and her husband, Lee, all of Mtn Grove, and Lois Hall of Eugene, Oregon; a sister-in-law: Lola Mathis of Paola, Kansas; and a host of nieces, nephews, and friends, who will miss her very much.

Funeral Service:
Thursday, October 11, 2012 at 2:00 PM at Craig-Hurtt Funeral Home.

Visitation:
Wednesday, October 10, 2012 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at Craig-Hurtt Funeral Home.

Memorial Contributions:
Mountain Valley Cemetery Fund c/o the funeral home.