Sylvia Fields Witt

Sylvia Dawn (Fields) Witt, 89, passed away on Tuesday, August 27, 2024. She was born to Lester Fields and Frankie Davis Fields on January 1, 1935. Sylvia was born and raised in Beech Grove, Virginia, beneath the shadow of the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. Sylvia was married to her beloved husband John (Johnny) Wayne Witt, who preceded her in death. She was also preceded in death by two sisters, Marion Brown and Gwen Black, and a niece and nephew, Frankie Kirtland and Donald Brown. She is survived by three siblings: LaVerne Napier, James Fields, and Carolyn Mattox, and a brother-in-law, Carlton Mattox. Seven of her nieces and nephews still living are: Dale Brown, Deborah Garcia, Denise McClanahan, Vivian Brown, Keith Mattox, Diane Crickenberger, and Scott Mattox. There are also numerous great nieces and great nephews who, along with all the others, will miss Sylvia so much. The pallbearers: Dale Brown, Keith Mattox, Scott Mattox, Jacob Anderson, Nathan Anderson, and Roy McClanahan, who are her nephews and great nephews, feel so honored to help lay her to rest.

Sylvia did not herself have children, but her nieces and nephews, and great nieces and great nephews became her children in a very real sense. Sylvia was kind, patient, and generous with her time and money. As her sister Carolyn said, “She had one big heart.” Sylvia was also quite successful. After graduating from Rockfish Valley High School in Nelson County, she attended Dunsmore Business School in Staunton, Virginia, and after certification, became a secretary at General Electric in Waynesboro, and before she retired had become Executive Administrative Assistant to the CEO at GE/Fanuc in Charlottesville, Virginia, for many years.

After Sylvia retired, she devoted herself to helping others: one example is her help for her sister Gwen, in her declining years.

Some of Sylvia’s hobbies were square-dancing, camping and boating, collecting antique glassware, and making beautiful stuffed animals and dolls. Her nieces and nephews enjoyed going to her house to visit, where she cooked delicious food, and entertained them. Sylvia was known for her sense of humor, and for telling hilarious stories about her childhood. Sylvia was smart, and a lot of fun to be around.

Faith was important to Sylvia; she was a long-time member of Hebron Baptist Church in Afton, Virginia. We her family hope and believe that she is now with God and His Son Jesus, free of all the shackles of old age and infirmity, happy with her loved ones in Christ, who have preceded her. “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”1 Corinthians 15:55-57

A funeral service will be held at Reynolds Hamrick Funeral Homes, 618 W Main Street, Waynesboro, VA, on Thursday, September 5th. Visitation is at 12pm followed by the service at 1pm. Burial will follow at Augusta Memorial Park, 1775 Goose Creek Road, Waynesboro, VA 22980.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to The Salvation Army https://give.virginiasalvationarmy.org/give/302300#!/donation/checkout, or The Heart Fund https://www.theheartfund.eu/

A special thanks and recognition go to Sylvia’s niece Denise McClanahan, who for the last three months was with Sylvia by day and by night, pouring out her heart in service to Sylvia in her time of need. Denise fulfilled Galatians 6:2: “Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.”

Arrangements have been entrusted to Reynolds Hamrick Funeral Homes of Waynesboro.

Relatives and friends may share condolences and memories with the family online by visiting www.reynoldshamrickfuneralhomes.com