Mae Fannie (Bradshaw) Miles

On July 20, 1925, Mae Fannie Bradshaw was born to Mr. Edward Bradshaw and Mrs. Elkana Compton Bradshaw. The majority of Mae’s years were spent in North Carolina. She was a resident of Alamance County. Mae graduated from North Carolina A&T State University and was a proud Aggie and member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.. She was a wife of 40+ years and long-time member of Miles Chapel Baptist Church.

Mae majored in history at NC A&T and began her career as a history teacher. After a few years of teaching, she accepted a job with Western Electric, which began her career in the corporate world. Beginning her career at Western Electric and later AT&T, Mae spent over 33 years in that environment being, along with a small group of others, one of the few African Americans in that environment. She took advantage of her opportunities and was afforded opportunities to excel and be promoted, even in the Civil Rights era when minorities had few to no champions in the workplace. She exhibited great pride in her work, as was customary for the African Americans in her generation. The company motto, was “Pride in Personal Performance.” and she embraced that motto.

In 1955, Mae and William (Bill) Preston Miles were joined in holy matrimony. Together, they raised two children: Wilbert L. Bracey (Betty) of Athens, Georgia, and Dr. Darlene M. Urquhart of Wake Forest, North Carolina. Over the course of their 40+ year union, they worked faithfully to instill in their children an enduring value system: believe in God; get a good education; obtain a good job, do the right thing, and treat people right in order to make a contribution to the world. Mae understood the times in which she lived and she played her part in the fight for civil rights, justice, and equality in the African American community. Equally, or of more importance, Mae loved the church. She was a long-time member of Miles Chapel Baptist Church in Mebane, North Carolina, and she was especially happy to see church members reach out to those in need in the broader community. That brought her great joy.

On March19, 2024, with more than 98 years of purposeful living, Mae entered into her rest. Unusual for her time, Mae was an only child, and her extended family was very small for the times. She only had three first cousins, so Bill’s family was her family. Mae also had three adopted sons:  Brian Bradshaw, Gerald “Hosea” McBroom and Joe Nathan Urquhart.

She leaves to cherish her memory one son: Wilbert L. Bracey (Betty), and one daughter, Darlene Urquhart; two sisters-in-law: Marie Miles -Willis (Lofton,Sr.-deceased) and Sylvia Miles - Ervin, and a host of nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her husband, “Bill,” and three brothers-in-law and two sisters-in-law: Edward Miles (Margie), Kennis (Jack) Miles (Rotha), and Lewis Miles Jr. (Baby June).

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