Whitesell-Somers Family Web Project - Person Sheet
Whitesell-Somers Family Web Project - Person Sheet
BirthJan 16, 1932, Rockingham County, North Carolina470, Rebecca Ann “Becky” Chrismon Rakestraw
DeathNov 11, 2019, Eden, Rockingham County, North Carolina566, Michael "Mike" Garland Chrismon,470, Rebecca Ann “Becky” Chrismon Rakestraw
BurialSmyrna Presbyterian Church, Madison, Rockingham County, North Carolina470, Rebecca Ann “Becky” Chrismon Rakestraw
FatherRoy Capers CHRISMON (1896-1990)
MotherOllie Mae BROWN (1902-2002)
Spouses
BirthAug 21, 1927, Rockingham County, North Carolina470, Thomas Watson Rakestraw
DeathMay 20, 2015, Rockingham County, North Carolina470, Thomas Watson Rakestraw,632
BurialSmyrna Presbyterian Church, Madison, Rockingham County, North Carolina470, Thomas Watson Rakestraw
Marriage1953, Reidsville, Rockingham County, North Carolina470, Thomas Watson Rakestraw
Obituary Online notes for “Becky” Rebecca Ann CHRISMON
Rebecca “Becky” Chrismon Rakestraw, age 87, of Eden passed away Monday, November 11, 2019.

Funeral services will be held 3:00 PM Sunday November 17, 2019 at Smyrna Presbyterian Church and the burial will follow in the church cemetery. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the church.

She was born on January 16, 1932 the daughter of Roy Capers Chrismon and Ollie Brown Chrismon and raised in Rockingham County. A graduate of Reidsville High School, she later attended the business program at Elon College.

She married her husband, Thomas Watson Rakestraw, in 1953 and was a homemaker for most of her life with her passions being baking and canning vegetables from the garden.

She read cookbooks for as long as she could and watched the cooking channel daily. Her baking specialties included her rich chocolate cake, cheese biscuits and mac n’ cheese that were staples of every family gathering, holiday and special event. Her recipes have been saved, written and printed in the Rakestraw Family Cookbook, with family members continuing her legacy by recreating them to this day.

She was a devoted and loving wife, mother and grandmother and was married to her husband, Watson, for 61 years until his death in 2015. She lived in Eden until 2016 and was blessed to have wonderful neighbors that she missed and cherished even with distance.

She is survived by three children; Thomas Watson Rakestraw, Jr. and wife Pam, Susan Allen and husband James, Scott Rakestraw and wife Katie. Four grandchildren; Emory Rakestraw, Graham Rakestraw, Caroline Rakestraw and Nicole Allen. Her sister and friend, Pat Chrismon Kopco and husband Bob, multiple nieces and nephews and faithful canine, Lola, who was her constant companion for the past three years.

Along with her parents, she is preceded in death by her husband, Thomas Watson Rakestraw and brother Garland Chrismon.

Condolences may be made to the family at www.wilkersonfuneral.com
470, Rebecca Ann “Becky” Chrismon Rakestraw
Last Modified Oct 16, 2025Created Oct 28, 2025 using Reunion for Macintosh
Created Oct 28, 2025 by Terry M. Whitesell

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