Thelma V. Young

Thelma Vernell Young was born on January 20, 1946, in Cleveland, Ohio to Kitty Odell Young and Eddie White. Both of her parents, and her only sibling, Franklin Dwight Young, preceded her in death.

Thelma was extremely intelligent and gifted, she loved learning and reading. Thelma was always a straight-A student and took great pride in her ability to comprehend so quickly.

She accepted Christ as her Lord and Savior at an early age at East Mt. Zion Baptist Church. As an adult, Thelma continued her walk with Christ and became an active member of Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church.

Thelma took her talents to the United States Postal Service and retired after 30 years of service from the registry department. In her spare time, Thelma loved reading and enjoyed Sci-Fi, mysteries and thriller novels along with inspirational poetry. She was a master at solving crossword puzzles and a member of a competitive bowling league.

When Thelma wasn’t traveling on a cruise to a tropical destination you could count on her, being in the Golden State of California doting on her granddaughters.

Thelma had plenty of love to go around; she joined the Miracle Retreat Family as one of their Core Members in 1990. She loved to crochet and took on the project of making over 30 rugs for the retreat family. Thelma would often tease her cats Desdemona and Shenandoah with balls of yarn.

As a gifted artist; she played the lead actress in both of Miracles productions “God Blocked It!” in 2006 as Grandma and “The Gift!” as Ms. Sena, both were performed at the Ohio Theater, Playhouse Square in Cleveland, Ohio, in April 2006 and June 2013 respectively with sold-out performances.

Left to cherish her memory is daughter, Kimberley Smith, her two granddaughters, Kemea and Kiana Smith, and extended relatives.

Thelma will be truly missed by countless friends including Harriet Hicks, Delilah Bell-Fowler, Belinda Gray, Valerie Hester and Tamara Parrish who she impacted with her kind spirit.