Pledger, Shirley Provost (Mrs. William)
3/24/2004
| Shirley Provost Pledger was born March 22, 1914 in Springfield, Massachusetts to Edward and Anna Provost. Shirley was one of five children. It was while attending Hartford Seminary Foundation where she received her certificate in Religious Education that she met her future husband, W. Ferrell Pledger, a young pastor out of Duke University on his way into the Christian mission fields in India. At the age of 25, during a time of war and upheaval in Europe as well as the Mideast, she followed Ferrell Pledger to Baroda, India where they were married October 17, 1938. For 15 years thereafter, by going into the villages and homes of the Indians and inviting the people into their hearts and home, they spread the Word of God to the people in India. After returning to The States, Shirley taught Sunday School, provided the music, and spoke with her husband on the Methodist Missions in India at various churches throughout the United States. After moving to Shreveport, Louisiana, she briefly taught school at St. John's Catholic School. In conjunction with her husband, Dr. William Ferrell Pledger, she served several Methodist Churches in the ArkLaTex area. Their final charge was the Keithville United Methodist Church in Keithville, Louisiana, where they were members until after Dr. Pledger's death in 1984. In 1999, Shirley moved to North Little Rock, Arkansas. Shirley died of natural causes March 24, 2004, just two days after celebrating her 90th birthday surrounded by her entire family. She is survived by only one sister, Winona Partington, of Eureka, California and is succeeded by her son, Edward T. Pledger of Tampa, Florida; her daughter, Cisly P. Morgan of Keithville, Louisiana; her son, Dr. Norman R. Pledger of North Little Rock, Arkansas; seven grandchildren; eleven great grandchildren and a twelfth great grandchild due in August 2004. |
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| Source: Louisiana Conference Journal, 2004 | |
