Agnes Coker

Agnes Coker was born on August 27, 1918 in Laurens, South Carolina. She departed this life on September 22, 2011. Her mother died when she was very young and her brothers and sisters were separated. Agnes and her sister Elizabeth were raised by a foster mother. When she was older, she loved to go to Laurens and Greenville, South Carolina to visit her brother Jim. She was preceded in death by all of her siblings. She married Sylvester Coker and moved to Baltimore in the late 1940’s, and from this union three children were born. Although she lost her firstborn, a boy, she later had two daughters, Sylvia and Angela. Her husband, Sylvester, preceded her in death. She attended schools in South Carolina and Baltimore, Maryland, eventually completing her GED. She was a homemaker until her daughters started school. She was a great cook and was asked by the Principal of the Thomas G. Hayes elementary school to apply for a job in the food services department. She applied and worked in food services with the Baltimore City School system until her retirement. She believed in education and lifelong learning and completed many evening classes, receiving certificates in nursing and dressmaking. She was always involved in community and civic activities, and loved to garden. She always had beautiful flowers and plants in her home and in her garden. She was a long time member of Southern Baptist Church, the only church she attended for more than 40 years until her illness. Her joy was participating in church activities. She loved her church and her daughters. At Southern, she served as a nurse with the Nightingale Nurses, as a member of the Jubilee Chorus and participated in the Senior Citizens group. She was also active in the Eastern Star organization. She leaves to mourn: her daughters, Sylvia Coker and Angela Martin; nieces Linda Cotton and Geraldine Rice (Spartanburg, South Carolina), and nephew Tyson Coker (Dayton, Ohio); special friends who cared for her and visited her at the nursing home and hospital during her illness, Sharon Sheppard, Theresa Edmonds and Francine Noel; and a host of other friends. Special thanks goes to Dolores Best of Da Best Shared Housing and the staff of the Good Samaritan Nursing Home, especially the Park Unit staff, who cared for her during her later years; and the Good Samaritan Hospital Critical Care Unit staff who cared for her during her recent illness.

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Agnes Coker

August 27, 1918 - September 22, 2011