Rilla Waits Matthews

September 4, 1923 - September 8, 2020

Mrs. Rilla Waits Matthews (Nanny Matthews) departed this life on Tuesday, September 8, 2020; just four days after celebrating her 97th birthday. Rilla was born to Willie and Bertie Twiggs Waits on September 4, 1923, in Bartow County, Georgia. She was the third born of nine siblings. Her childhood was spent working on the family farm, picking cotton, and helping raise her younger siblings. In the late 1940s, she met Hughlon Ray Matthews and he would become the love of her life. They were married in April of 1953. Two children were born of this union, Sherry Alene and Hughlon Ray, Jr. Although she never worked outside the home, she was a talented seamstress, cook, and caregiver. She cared for both her mother and father as their health declined. She adored her grandchildren and kept them with her as much as possible. One of her joys was cooking Saturday afternoon dinners for her family. She is preceded in death by her husband, Hughlon Ray Matthews, Sr.; brothers, Edward, Millard, Charles, Dillard and Billy; sisters, Laura and Winnie; and son-in-law, Randy Willerson. She leaves to cherish her memory, daughter, Sherry Matthews Willerson; son, Hughlon Ray Matthews, Jr.; granddaughter, Brandy White and her husband, Mark, and their children, Hannah, Lauren, and Maggie Jon; grandsons, Trey Matthews and his children, Levi, Aaron, Camen and Rhianna, Cory Matthews, Adam Matthews, Ryan Matthews and his children, Ayden, Khloe, Aubrey and Alana, and Jon Willerson and his wife, Amber and their children, Adalyn and Jackson; great-great-granddaughter, Harper Kate Pressley; sister, Louise Waits Rogers; as well as a host of cousins, nieces and nephews. Graveside services will be held on Friday, September 11, 2020 at 11:00 am at East View Cemetery in Rome, Georgia. Honorary pallbearers include her grandsons, Trey Matthews, Cory Matthews, Adam Matthews, Ryan Matthews, Jon Willerson and Jackson Willerson