Mildred U. Waters

Obituary

Mildred U. Waters was the third of four children born April 13, 1938 to the late John Barksdale and Mary Hughes Barksdale in Halifax, Virginia. She departed this life to join the Lord on October 26, 2020.

Mildred enjoyed her childhood and graduated from Mary M. Bethune High School in Halifax, Virginia. She moved to Brooklyn, New York in the 1950’s. She attended Business School in Brooklyn, NY where she met Donald O. Waters Sr. they were marries on August 26, 1961, and had a one day honeymoon and then Don and Mildred were shipped out to Washington, DC. They were transferred to Germany for two years while Donald served in the Army. In 1963 after serving for 2 years they moved to Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, NY. In 1965 a job opportunity relocated them to Fishkill, New York. They were blesses with 2 children, Donald Jr. and Sonya. Mildred loved being a mom, and encourages her children to explore and experience their ambitions. Don Jr. and Sonya remember her supporting and cheering them on at all sporting and scholastic events.

Mildred was a bookkeeper for several years until she retired. Her favorite pastime was playful bantering with Jon, watching TV Land Network, Court TV, and all of the old reruns. Mildred could be found in the kitchen every holiday baking her desserts for the young and old. We still enjoy her Chocolate Chip Cookies because she passed that on to her girls, Sonya and Sydney. Her love for travel allowed her to visit many countries and states. She would brag that she was a World Traveler. In her travels she has been to Germany, Rota, Marbella & Grand Canary Islands, Spain, Okinawa, Atsugi & Tokyo, Japan, Romania, Hawaii, Rome, Italy, Lisbon, Portugal, the Bahamas and many places in the United States such as, Louisiana, Atlanta, California, New York, Maryland, Florida, Virginia, Detroit, Rhode Island, Philadelphia, Ohio, and Connecticut, to name a few.  Mildred never let any grass grow under her feet. Her last road trip was February 2020 to New Orleans, Louisiana for Mardi Gras.

Mildred’s genuine love for her children, brought her to Maryland with her son and to travel 3 months out of a year overseas to spend time with her daughter. Nana. As she was affectionately known, would come to her grandchildren’s recitals, sporting events even if she need them to park the car on the field with the heat running for her to see them. She chronicled all of the events she attend with her multiple disposable cameras, so we started calling her “ The Paparazzi”. Her extended love for her friends and relatives kept her in tough with them through weekly scheduled phone calls even overseas with her same phone number for 50 years.

Although she encountered health related challenges in recent years, she never let them dampen her spirits. Milder was a cancer survivor for over 20 years and during those years she accepted Christ as her Personal Saviour.

Mildred is preceded in death by both of her parents John and Mary, three siblings and her very special Aunt Rosa.

She leaves to cherish her memory her loving son Donald Jr, loving daughter Sonya, four grandchildren,. Best friends Marva and Rita, special cousin Ruth and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

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