There are some people who leave an impression on your life, and then there are those whose love becomes woven into the very fabric of who you are. They are the ones whose strength carries you, whose prayers cover you, whose laughter fills a room, and whose presence makes a family feel whole. June Alice Eidson was that person and so much more.
Born on Christmas Day, December 25, 1948, June brought a special kind of love and light into the lives of those around her. And while her birthday will always be remembered on a day filled with love and togetherness, the greatest gift she gave was the love she poured into her family throughout her life.
Known lovingly as June, Mama, and Mamaw, she was a woman unlike any other. To her family, she was our everything. She was our matriarch, our protector, our source of strength, and the glue that held us all together. She was the heart of our family, and we are left trying to imagine a world without the woman who made so much of our world what it was.
We have lost a one-of-a-kind woman—a once-in-a-lifetime Mama whose love, faith, strength, and spirit can never be replaced.
There was something extraordinary about June. In her small little body lived the heart of a thousand lions. She possessed a fierce, unshakable love for the people who mattered most to her. Her husband, her children, her daughters-in-love, her grandchildren, and her great-grandchildren were her world. She loved them with everything she had, and when it came to protecting her family, there was no limit to the strength she could find within herself.
Her love was never halfway. It was passionate, determined, and unwavering. If you were hers, you knew it. You knew you were loved, you knew you were protected, and you knew she would stand up for you with every ounce of strength in her.
But Mama’s strength was only one part of what made her so special. She was also full of joy, laughter, and life. She loved the Lord and praised Him through singing, sharing a voice as beautiful as an angel’s. Her faith was an important part of who she was, and there was something special about hearing her lift her voice in praise.
She also loved to dance, laugh, and cut up. She knew how to have fun, how to bring life into a room, and how to make memories that would be told and retold for years to come. She could be as fierce as a lion when protecting her family and as joyful as anyone you could imagine when it was time to sing, dance, and enjoy life.
That was June. She was a beautiful combination of strength and tenderness, faith and fire, determination and joy. She was a woman who loved deeply, lived wholeheartedly, and left her mark on the people around her.
And then there were her prayers.
For those of us blessed to call her Mama, there was a comfort in knowing she was praying for us. There is something sacred about a mother’s prayers—the knowledge that someone who loves you beyond measure is calling your name before the Lord, asking Him to guide you, protect you, and carry you through life.
One of the deepest heartaches of losing Mama is knowing we will miss the sound of her voice, the comfort of her prayers, and the reassurance that came from knowing she was there, lifting us up in faith and love.
We will miss her voice. We will miss her laughter, her singing, her dancing, and the way she could turn an ordinary moment into a memory. We will miss her strength, her fierce devotion, her presence at family gatherings, and the little things about her that we may not have realized were so precious until we could no longer take them for granted.
We will miss the feeling of having our Mama here.
When the person who has always been the heart of a family is gone, the loss reaches into every corner of life. It is felt in the quiet moments, in the celebrations, in the stories we tell, and in the times when we instinctively wish we could pick up the phone and hear her voice one more time. It is felt in the empty space where her presence once made everything feel right.
And yet, even in our heartbreak, we recognize that a love like June’s does not end with her passing. It lives on in the family she built, the faith she shared, the lessons she taught, and the generations who will carry her memory forward. It lives in her husband’s heart, in her children’s lives, in her daughters-in-love, and in every grandchild and great-grandchild who has been blessed to be part of her story. It lives in the people she encouraged, the lives she touched, and the countless memories that will continue to bring laughter and tears for years to come.
June did not simply occupy a place in our family. She helped make our family what it is.
Her influence cannot be measured by the years she lived or the number of people who knew her. It is measured in the love she gave, the people she protected, the faith she shared, and the generations she helped shape. Every person who was touched by her carries a piece of her story. Some will remember her singing. Some will remember her laughter. Some will remember her fierce spirit. Others will remember a kind word, a meaningful conversation, or simply the comfort of being loved by her.
Each memory is a piece of the woman we knew, and together they tell the story of a life that mattered immeasurably.
June was preceded in death by her parents, James A. Yarbrough and Elsie Kathleen Yarbrough; her sister, Joanette Tolleson; her brothers, James (Sonny) Yarbrough Jr., Isaac Horace Yarbrough, and Clifford Curtis Yarbrough; her granddaughter, Marissa Eidson; and her great-grandchildren, Brooklyn Morrell and PJ Gravette.
She leaves behind her devoted husband, Edmund Joseph Eidson Sr.; her sister, Brenda Eidson; and her four children, who were among the greatest loves of her life:
– Daughters: Shan Alford and Kathy Deaton.
– Sons: Edmund Joseph Eidson Jr. and his wife, Kimberly Eidson; and Jeffrey Eidson and his wife, Michelle Eidson.
She was a proud and loving grandmother to fourteen grandchildren, each holding a special place in her heart:
1. Joshua Deaton (Kacie)
2. Teresa Morrell (Luke)
3. Zach Gravette (Robyn)
4. Michael Deaton (Alyssa)
5. Joseph Eidson (Hannah)
6. Justin Eidson (Heather)
7. Ryan Dennison (Bryanna)
8. Adam Eidson (Caitlin)
9. Kodie Eidson
10. Cheyenne Eidson
11. Hayley Eidson
12. Marissa Eidson, who preceded her in death
13. Ayden Eidson
14. Gavyn Alford
Her love grew with each generation, and she was blessed with eighteen great-grandchildren:
1. Zoey Morrell
2. Bryson Morrell
3. Levi Morrell
4. Riley Morrell
5. Madelynn Deaton
6. Blakeley Gravette
7. Brooklyn Morrell, who preceded her in death
8. Harper Morrell
9. PJ Gravette, who preceded her in death
10. Scarlett Eidson
11. Olivia Gravette
12. Thorin Eidson
13. Everly Dennison
14. Jack Eidson
15. Waylon Eidson
16. Johnathan Abston
17. Addilyn Downing
18. Halie Downing
To June, family was never just a word. It was her life’s work, her greatest joy, and the love that guided so much of what she did. She poured herself into the people she loved, and the generations that follow her will continue to carry her influence, her stories, her faith, and her love.
There will never be another June Alice Eidson. No one else will have her exact voice, her particular spirit, her beautiful faith, or that extraordinary heart of a thousand lions. No one else will be our Mama or our Mamaw in the way she was. Her place in our family belongs to her alone, and it will remain hers forever.
We are heartbroken that our time with her on this earth has come to an end. We wish we had more time, more conversations, more laughter, more songs, and just one more opportunity to hear her voice and know she was praying for us. But alongside our grief is a profound gratitude: we were the ones who got to love her, learn from her, laugh with her, and call her ours.
What a blessing it was to be her family. What a gift it was to be loved by her.
Until we meet again, Mama, we will keep loving one another the way you taught us. We will hold this family together, continue the traditions you helped create, share the stories that keep your memory alive, and make sure your grandchildren and great-grandchildren know the remarkable woman who came before them.
We will keep singing, keep laughing, keep praising the Lord, and keep finding ways to carry your love into the future.
And when we need strength, we will remember the heart of a thousand lions that lived inside that small little body. When we need comfort, we will remember your love. When we need guidance, we will remember your faith. And when we long to hear your voice again, we will hold close the memory of every prayer you ever prayed for us.
You were our heart, our strength, our protector, our matriarch, and our everything.
We have lost a one-of-a-kind woman, but we will never lose the love you planted in us. Your voice may be quiet here on earth, but the love you gave us will never be silenced. Your prayers will remain part of us. Your faith will continue to guide us. Your legacy will live on through every generation you loved.
We will carry you in our hearts for the rest of our lives, until the day we are together again.
Celebration of Life
Viewing
Wednesday, October 14, 2026 | 6–9 PM
Meadows Funeral Home
760 Highway 11 SW, Monroe, GA 30655
Funeral Service
Thursday, October 15, 2026 | 1 PM
Jersey Baptist Church
1891 Alcovy Station Rd, Covington, GA 30014
Reposted courtesy of Meadows Funeral Home.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.