Ann Marie Lower's Obituary
“Normal is overrated; God called us to be separate.”
It feels right to start by saying that family always came first for Momma Ann. Born on December 4, 1967, in Oswego, NY, to Harold and Betty Smith, she carried her humble roots straight into every kitchen, card table, and church pew she touched.
Momma Ann found her lifelong teammate in Charlie Lower, and together they built a home that seemed to expand whenever someone needed a seat at the table. Their children—Bradly Lower and Sarah Black—knew that “Mom’s cooking fixes everything” wasn’t just a cute saying; it was a standing rule. Sunday dinners, Thanksgiving feasts, and cookie-filled Christmases all started with her apron tied tight, a hymn on her lips, and the question, “Who’s hungry?”
She stitched love into every hem she mended, whipped up comfort in pans of lasagna and meatloaf, and never let a month pass without a spirited Canasta night. If you heard singing in the shower or harmonies in the church pew at Lyles United Pentecostal Church, chances are it was Momma Ann, smiling while she sang. Games, music, cooking, arts & crafts—she treated each hobby as an open invitation to spend time together.
Her quiet strengths— humble, loyal, ️compassionate, hardworking, supportive—showed up in all the small moments: a well-timed slice of meatloaf, an encouraging scripture, or a sly grin when she laid down the winning meld. “She was a holy lady that made everyone feel like family,” and nobody who met her would argue otherwise.
Momma Ann leaves behind her loving husband Charlie; her son Bradly and daughter-in-law Amanda Lower; her daughter Sarah Black and son-in-law Walker Black; and her cherished grandson Alexander McMillian. She is also survived by her parents Harold and Betty Smith, her sister Lorie Smith, and nieces Jessica Fellers and Ashley Fellows. She is reunited in heaven with her brother Charles “Chucky” Smith.
We will keep playing the cards, baking the cookies, and singing the hymns she loved, knowing she taught us how to make everyone feel like family. Rest easy, Momma Ann—we’ll handle the mending from here.
There will be a celebration of her life at a later date.
Arrangements entrusted to Spring Hill Funeral Home and Cemetery, 5110 Gallatin Pike, Nashville, TN 37216, 615-865-1101, https://www.springhillfh.com.
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