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A funeral service celebrating the life of Mrs. Melissa Bernice Stuart Hartfield of Purvis, Miss., was held at 10 a.m. Friday, Oct. 2, at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Purvis. A graveside ceremony followed at Boone Cemetery.

Mrs. Hartfield was born on Feb. 18, 1938, and passed from this life on Sept. 29, 2020, at the age of 82. A native of Pine, and alumna of Pine High School and Southeastern Louisiana University, Mrs. Hartfield used her bachelor’s degree in home economics in all parts of her life, first and foremost as a wife, mother and grandmother, and occasionally as a teacher at Purvis High School. A faithful member of Tabernacle Baptist Church, Mrs. Hartfield supported her church community throughout her life.

Mrs. Hartfield was preceded in death by her natural parents, Robert Harvey Stuart and Mary Geneva Lewis Stuart; and her adopted parents, the Rev. James Stuart and Melissa Thomas Stuart; as well as her brothers, Joseph, Lavon, Edward Earl, Cecil, and Douglas. Survivors include her husband, Roy Hartfield Sr. of Purvis; her three children, Vialla Hartfield-Méndez (Huga Méndez) of Decatur, Ga., Roy Hartfield Jr. of Auburn, Ala., and Stuart Hartfield (Nancy) of Harvest, Ala.; her grandchildren, Alexandra Méndez, Elizabeth Hartfield, Walker Hartfield, Kate Hartfield, Jesse Hartfield, Jonathan Hartfield, and Joshua Hartfield; and her sister, Rita Stuart Wood.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Tabernacle Baptist Church.