Etta Mae Towles, age 101 of Smyrna, formerly of Memphis, died Tuesday at StoneCrest Medical Center. She was a native of West Baden, IN and a daughter of the late William and Maude Bowman Bird. She was also preceded by her husband, Carlton Towles and a sister, Lillian Marie Till.

Survivors include her children, Lara Kilpatrick of Smyrna, and Carlton Towles, Jr. and wife Sheree of Collierville; grandchildren, Malcolm Smart and wife Carole of Collierville, and Amy Towles of Corinth, MS; great-grandchildren, Dustin Gant and Daniel Sauer, both of Corinth, MS; and a nephew, Bill Garrison of Nashville.

She and her husband loved traveling across the country on their motorcycle and making new friends. Following her husband's death, she moved to Smyrna to live with her daughter and she continued to travel, make new friends, and enjoy the neighborhood children. Mrs. Towles was a 50 year member of Boulevard Baptist Church in Memphis and after moving to Middle Tennessee, she joined Green Hill Baptist Church in Murfreesboro. She was a Past Matron of O.K. Houck Eastern Star Lodge in Memphis and a Grand Representative to the State of Washington.

Visitation will be 4:00 until 8:00 p.m. Thursday at Woodfin Chapel, Smyrna. Graveside services will be 2:00 p.m. Friday at Memphis Memory Gardens with Bro. Danny Berryhill officiating.

The family requests memorials be made in memory of Mrs. Towles to Green Hill Baptist Church, 6309 Burnt Knob Rd, Murfreesboro, TN 37129. An online guestbook is available for Mrs. Towles at www.woodfinchapel.com.