Martha Leslie Hailey DuBose, 77, born June 17, 1946, of Wartrace, died on January 25, 2024.
While known by all as the exceptional writer she was, she will be missed as much for her passionate intellectualism, lifelong study of history and politics, wry social commentary, intensely articulate and pointed expression of her deeply held views, and artistic creativity. Her curiosity knew no bounds - she never encountered a rabbit hole without learning every twist and turn until she was an expert.
She was born in Nashville in 1946 to Elizabeth Zerfoss Fryer and Syd Houston Hailey Jr. She was particularly close with her stepfather from the time she was an infant, Edward Allen Fryer, and her maternal grandparents, Dr. Kate Savage Zerfoss and Dr. Thomas Bowman Zerfoss, all of Nashville. Like her parents and grandparents, she attended Vanderbilt University, graduating in 1968. She then earned a Masters of the Arts in Journalism at the University of Missouri.
Martha was a gifted writer. Researching, critically examining, writing, reading, and all forms of the written word informed her life.
See full obit in Thursdays Shelbyville Times-Gazette
She is survived by her siblings William S. Fryer of Columbia, Tenn., Janice Hailey Boyko, of Brentwood, Tenn., Judith Hailey Walden of Phoenix, Syd H. Hailey, III of Woodstock, Ga., and Mary Hailey Cunningham of Huntington Beach, Ca.; daughters, Kate DuBose Tomassi of San Francisco and Polly DuBose (Rick Kersmarki) of Nashville, and her three grandchildren, Matilda Marshall Tomassi, Rowan Elizabeth Tomassi, and Edward Allen DuBose Kersmarki.
The family plans to announce a memorial and celebration of life at a later date. Please consider honoring Martha through a donation to Doctors Without Borders.
