
Julia Poe Parker Credle
April 9, 1934 – July 2, 2023
A native of northeastern North Carolina, Julia departed life at Summer Breeze Assisted Living in
Savannah, GA. She was the daughter of Mayon J. Parker and Mildred Poe Parker of Ahoskie, NC and the wife of
Carroll Spencer Credle, Jr. of Windsor, NC.
She was a member of the Ahoskie High School class of 1952. After graduating from Salem College in
Winston-Salem, NC, she embarked on a thirty-five-year teaching career with North Carolina Public
Schools with most of her tenure spent serving elementary school students – primarily in fifth and sixth
grade reading and language arts – in Bertie County (Windsor, NC). Julia was a forty-eight-year member of
the Beta Upsilon Chapter of Delta Kappa Gama Society International having served a term as president
over the years. In her late forties she returned to college, while teaching full-time, and achieved a
Masters Degree as well as a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Elementary Education from East Carolina
University. At the end of her school teaching career, she enthusiastically entered the field of historic
house interpretation serving as a docent at Historic Hope until 2018. Museum guests often noted the
quality and exuberance of her tour presentation. Only her health decline at the age of 84 took her away
from it.
She exemplified the positive and optimistic attributes of her profession. Julia taught her whole life as a
classroom teacher, historic house docent, mother, and friend.
She married her high school sweetheart, Carroll Credle, in 1957 and they shared together fifty-two
years, creating a home and raising two children for whom they were both proud. Throughout her life
she gave her husband and children the unconditional love and support for which they depended. She
was the rock of the family.
She was known to smile through troubles. She monitored from the wings allowing her husband to be
Santa Claus in all his glory. Her favorite things were caring for her home – particularly her yard and the
flowers that grew there, reading history and biography, and giving tours at Hope. She loved seeing
former students who – as grown men and women – would ask her, “Mrs. Credle, do you remember me?”
She always replied, “I sure do. Are you behaving yourself?” After her husband died in 2009, she
reimagined her life and along with Betty Constable ran the roads for eight good years. In those later
years, the Windsor community, particularly those at Hope and on the White Oak Road, kept an eye on
her, allowing her to live independently in her home for as long as she could.
A health crisis in 2019 necessitated her move to Savannah, Georgia to be closer to her daughter.
Cherishing her memory are her sister Suzannah Parker Early of Apex, NC; sister-in-law Shirley Woodley
Credle of Beaufort, SC; son Carroll S. Credle III of Chapel Hill, NC, daughter Jamie Credle and son-in-law
Raleigh Marcell of Savannah, GA; nieces Katherine Parker-Low, Lyn Hardway, and Woodley Credle,
nephews Joseph Parker, Herb Turner, and Joe Credle; dear friends Betty Constable and Charles Boyette
of Windsor; and her dog, Nell. Special thanks to the staff at Summer Breeze for providing her with a
home and excellent care during her years in Savannah.
A celebration of life will be held at Bunn’s Barbeque, 127 King Street, Windsor, NC, on Saturday, July 22
from 3 to 5 p.m. Friends, colleagues from Bertie County schools or Historic Hope and anyone who was
taught by Julia or Carroll Credle is welcome to stop by and say Hello. Refreshments will be served. A
private graveside interment at the Ahoskie Cemetery is planned. If friends and acquaintances wish to
donate in Julia’s memory, it should be to a beloved charity which could include Historic Hope Foundation (132 Hope House Road, Windsor, NC 27983) and the Bertie County Humane Society (217 County Farm Road, Windsor, NC 27983).
Offer Condolence for the family of Julia Parker Credle

Pam White (Jackson)
Dear Jamie and Carroll, I just learned of the passing of your Mom and I am so very sorry for your loss. Mrs. Credle taught me in 5th grade at Windsor Elementary and to this day—I can see her smile! Her love for books and reading were infectious. I fondly remember Jonathan Livingston Seagull, The Red Badge of Courage, and All’s Quiet on the Western Front. She assigned these readings and led us through them with careful instruction allowing us to find our way through and in the words. Mrs. Credle made a lasting impression on me and I am forever grateful. Though I know you will miss her, I know that she will live on in the many memories that you’ve shared. Mrs. Credle was a special lady who truly loved teaching and her students–I am better because of her! May she rest in peace now!