Mary Sue (Stroop) Gilleland

In Loving Memory of Mary Sue Stroop Gilleland

June 9,1940 – March 12, 2025

The sun has set on the remarkable life of Mary Sue Stroop Gilleland, who, with quiet dignity and a heart brimming with devotion, departed this world on Wednesday, March 12, 2025. She was eighty-four years old, a daughter of Rome, Georgia, born on June 9, 1940, to the late Robert and Elizabeth Garrard Stroop. Though the world is lesser now for her absence, somewhere beyond the veil, a porch swing creaks in the breeze, and she is at rest.

Mary was a woman whose love was not loud but steadfast, a tender force that wrapped itself around her family like a well-worn quilt. She was the truest kind of mother. The kind who measured time in school drop-offs and whispered lullabies, who found contentment in the simple joy of packing lunches and cheering from the stands. She did not seek grandeur or accolades, but if ever there was a calling worth its weight in gold, she lived it with reverence: wife, mother, grandmother, sister, friend.

She was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Shelby Gilleland, the man with whom she built a life filled with quiet joys and deep roots. Also waiting for her just beyond the horizon are her brother, John Turner Stroop, and her sisters, Babbeth Hawkins, Amelia Jones, and Ellen Stroop.

She leaves behind a family steeped in the warmth of her devotion: her son, Bob Gilleland, and her daughter, Mary Ellen Itson; her beloved grandchildren, Melody Earwood, Jeremy Itson, Amanda Gilleland, Gracie Gilleland, and Brenlee Gilleland. Each one carrying a piece of her love in the marrow of their being. Her presence will live on in her brother, Bub Stroop, and her sisters, Alice Rogers, Sarah Oldham, and Vicky Stroop, as well as in the hearts of those who were lucky enough to call her friend.

Mary was a woman of small, unspoken kindnesses. She did not seek the front pew, but she carried the quiet grace of Christ in her every gesture. She was always putting others before herself, always giving without asking anything in return. Even in her final days, when asked what she wanted to eat, she would not burden anyone with her desires, and would simply say, “Whatever y’all want.” It was her way, always: to make life easier, softer, sweeter for the people she loved.

She delighted in the rush of everyday family life. The school bells, the ballgames, the scraped knees and toothy grins of childdren. If there was a moment to be cherished, she was there, standing at the fence line, watching the world spin around the laughter of her family. She carried gum in her pockets and dollar bills taped inside greeting cards, each one adorned with her signature hand-drawn smiley faces, as if to say, "Here, take a little happiness. Carry it with you."

There are no words large enough to hold the vastness of her absence To say she will be missed is to say that the sky is blue; true, but woefully inadequate. A light has gone out, leaving behind a hush, a pause, an aching space where love once stood. However, we like Mary believe and know of Christ who is loving and just, we can rest assured that Mary Sue Stroop Gilleland is somewhere warm and bright, where the laughter of children never fades, and the kitchen light is always on.

Her family invites all who knew and loved her to gather in remembrance at Good Shepherd Funeral Home on Monday, March 17, 2025, at 6:00 PM. A graveside service will be held on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, at 10:00 AM at Oaknoll Memorial Gardens, where she will be laid to rest in the arms of eternity.

Serving as pallbearers, carrying her with the same love she carried them, are Charlie Ellison, Ford Earwood, Bob Gilleland, Cody Shepherd, Mason Brownlow, and Luke Lamb.

Arrangements are under the care of Parnick Jennings Good Shepherd Funeral Home, honored to serve a woman whose love will echo in the hearts of her family for generations to come.

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