OAK ISLAND — May W. Moore, 76, passed away Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2017, peacefully, surrounded by family at New Hanover Regional Medical Center. May was born March 17, 1941, in Oxford, N.C., the daughter of the late Anna H. and Jesse P. White.
May is survived by her husband, Jimmy Moore; children, Hailey Barbee Brady, Deborah Turner, and her husband, Randy, and Gibson V. Barbee III, and his wife, Lydia Leake; sister, Anne White Knopf, and her husband, Ronald; and several nieces and nephews.
May is a graduate of Duke University, Phi Beta Kappa, and held a master’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. May dedicated her life to helping others through a career as a public educator and a distinguished career in public service. May served on the Brunswick County Board of Education, and as a town councilwoman of Yaupon Beach, mayor of Yaupon Beach and as a county commissioner in Brunswick County. May believed in serving her community and loved Brunswick County, having visited since 1947 and living permanently on Oak Island since 1962. May volunteered weekly at New Hope Clinic and worked to support Brunswick County fishermen through Brunswick Catch.
May was an active member of St. Phillips Episcopal Church in Southport and helped establish the St. Phillips beach ministry in 1996. In November 2010, May was recognized for her service being inducted into the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, the highest civilian award given by the Governor of North Carolina.
May’s passions included kayaking, quilting, and traveling, having won several awards for her quilting. May loved to travel, and was proud to have visited every continent except Antarctica, including places such as the Galápagos Islands, Great Barrier Reef in Australia, Patagonia and Vietnam, among other locations.
Unfortunately, May’s service and travel adventures ended with an untimely battle with cancer, surprising family and friends who are saddened by the loss.
A celebration of life service will be held at 1 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 2, at St. Phillip’s Episcopal Church.
In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully requests donations in May’s honor be made to New Hope Clinic, or St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, Southport.
Share online condolences with the family at peacocknewnamwhite.com.
