Josephine Pernell Caudle

She was born on August 26, 1925, in Franklin County, North Carolina near Louisburg to Albert and Dora Pernell. They were farmers and around 1953 they moved to Virginia for a better job opportunity.

Josephine moved back to North Carolina after High School to pursue a career as a hairdresser.

She met James Caudle after WWII. They dated for a few years and were married on May 7, 1949 until his death on October 2, 1995. She said she was attracted to his wonderful sense of humor and his happy-go-lucky personality. She also said when he was young, he reminded her of Roy Rogers.

Josephine worked at Poole’s Beauty shop in Raleigh for more than 20 years and left there when James decided to open a country store and service station- Caudle’s Open Air Market and Service Station. They worked together at the store for 20 years.

After they sold the store, she began a new career as a certified nurse’s assistant for elderly patients. She enjoyed helping people and worked into her late 70’s. Josephine was so loved and appreciated by the families she worked for and was often hired by other family members to take care of their elderly loved ones as well. She was kind, thoughtful and generous and would give what she could to charities. She had a positive outlook on life and was always looking forward to the future.

Josephine loved vacationing in the North Carolina Mountains especially in the fall to admire the colorful leaves. She liked flowers, dogwood trees, watching snow fall, country music, animals, and a good pineapple milkshake. She had a wonderful sense of humor, enjoyed a good joke and playing pranks on her family. But most of all, she loved her family. Josephine was a loving and devoted wife and mother.

A graveside service will be held at 10:30 am on Tuesday, July 23, 2024, at Bethlehem Baptist Church Knightdale at 8400 Poole Rd, Knightdale, NC 27545.

In addition to her parents, Josephine is preceded in death by her husband, James Caudle; two grandsons, Philip Olive and David Sutton; brothers, Horace and Melvin, and a sister, Ida Mae Taylor.

She is survived by her children, Donna Olive and husband Tip, Debra Sutton, and Jimmy Caudle, 5 grandchildren, and 7 great grandchildren.