Bertha Lawrence Clay

Bertha Lawrence Clay departed this life and joined the ancestral plane on April 1, 2026, at the age of 82. She passed quietly and peacefully in her sleep by the bedside at home surrounded by her husband, Jim, her nurse, and care provider. Bertha was born
on October 23, 1943, to the late R. B. and Ida Lawrence. She grew up in Monroe, Louisiana, where she attended Carroll High School,
and after graduation, she enrolled at Grambling State University. She accepted Christ as Lord and Savior early in life and became a Sunday School Teacher until she left to attend college. She received a bachelor’s degree in library science and English from Grambling State University in May 1966 and a master’s degree in library science at the University of Michigan in 1970, where she also worked for four years. Bertha relocated 15 times with her husband before he retired in 2000. 

Bertha pledged Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., in 1964, where she remained true to sisterhood.

She leaves to cherish her memory her husband, Jimmie; sister, Bobbie Lawrence Butler of Monroe, Louisiana; brother, Charles Lawrence of Las Vegas, Nevada; son, Reginald; daughter-in-law, Cynthia; granddaughter, Courtney Clay of Prattville, Alabama; sister-in-law, Liller Lawrence of Monroe, Louisiana; sister-in-law, Della Lawrence of Las Vegas, Nevada; many nieces and nephews; and a host of other extended family members and friends.

Bertha was preceded in death by parents, R. B. and Ida Lawrence; brother, Richard Lawrence; sister, Ethel Lawrence; and sister, Doretha Lawrence Pero.

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