Ava Marie Rast

Born October 20, 1935, Ava Marie (Caldwell) Rast grew up as one of eight children in Sawmills, North Carolina. Her family worshiped at Mount Zion Baptist Church. Preferring to be outside, Ava reminisced, she " helped Daddy in the barn," while her sisters did housework. " I didn't like doing dishes and washing clothes, but I never did learn to milk the either." A graduate of Hudson High School, she wanted to be a dentist.
In 1954, Uncle Sam brought Ava and Dan together. After completing dental assistant training at Fort Sam Houston, the U.S Army assigned her to Fort Jackson, where upon one of her patients was Daniel Rast. After a brief courtship, they married in 1955, raising five boys in Columbia, South Carolina. She kindly adopted every pet the boys brought home - turtles, guinea pigs, rabbits, owls, squirrels, crawdads, dogs and cats, an occasional possum, and snakes too numerous to count (including one that roamed inside the house for six months before it was found). Always focused on the Lord, she "drugged" her children every time the doors were open. She served faithfully in the choir of five churches, sacrificed her desires and needs to send her sons to a Christian school, and worked for Glidden Paint Company for 25 years. After many moves, she and Daniel joined the Martha Franks family in November in 2017. Each of her sons and their families remains grateful for the love, compassion, and joy you have shared with them.
Forever a farm girl, Ava never encountered a stranger: As anyone who knew her will attest, she wrapped us in love from the very first moment we met her. She went Home peacefully Saturday, October 5, 2019. While we'll miss her friendship, touch, and love in this world, we know she's in Christ's embrace, enjoying a new body with no more pain and suffering. Although " Baptists don't dance," Marc says that she's probably dancing in heaven today. Ava loved our Lord and Savior and taught us how to love Him too. We love you, Mom-and will surely miss you!