Former legislator, advocate Mary Horne Odom dies at 93

Mary Horne Odom, 93, was a staunch Democrat and the first woman to serve in both houses of North Carolina’s General Assembly. She died Saturday in Raleigh, where she had lived for the last several years.

Her son, Raleigh City Councilman John Hubert Odom, said Odom moved to Raleigh so the family could better care for her, but she remained independent, living in her own apartment.

His mother was a self-made woman and his political hero, who instilled in her children a concern for others and sense of duty, John Odom said.

She also remained active in state issues, in 2003 opposing a state bill to allow often predatory payday lenders back in the state and in 2004 fighting to preserve the Whitaker Mill Senior Center – then Raleigh’s only public senior center.

“It’s a wonderful facility,” Odom said at the time. “It was built for old people, and that’s what we are – old.”

The Greenville native was born Jan. 29, 1921, and lived for many decades in Scotland County.

She is survived by two other sons, Legette W. Odom III and J. Phillip Odom, and her grandchildren.

Memorial arrangements could take a few weeks, John Odom said, to give family time to arrive from out of state. Odom’s body has been donated to East Carolina University for study, as was her wish, he said.

After graduating from Greenville High School in 1938 and East Carolina Teachers College with a bachelor’s degree in 1942, Odom taught science and math before moving on to industrial cooperative training at Scotland High School in Laurinburg. She also attended classes at UNC-Chapel Hill, N.C. State University and Flora Macdonald College in Red Springs, N.C., according to the N.C. Council for Women.

It was while living at the “teachery” – a dorm for teachers – that she met her husband, he said. Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Dusty Odom – a striking 6-foot-8-inches tall – went to the dorm to investigate a break-in, and as he was leaving, he leaned on the refrigerator, resting his arm on top, John Odom said.

The young Mary Horne – also tall, at 5-foot-11-inches – said that was when she fell in love with him, John Odom said.

The growing young family wasn’t poor, but they didn’t have a lot to spare, John Odom said. He recalled one year when they had enough money to get him a new pair of Converse sneakers. His mother used a marker to write the word “love” in one sneaker and “honor” in the other, he said.

“She said if you always walk with love and honor, you’ll have a good day,” he said.

In 1971, she joined the N.C. House, serving one term before being elected to the state Senate in 1975, John Odom said.

Odom also was a founder and the first speaker elected to the Senior Tar Heel Legislature, which advocates for senior adult concerns. In 1996, she won the first Margaret Hart Hardee Preeminence in Aging Award from the N.C. Division of Aging and Adult Services for her grassroots advocacy.

This story was originally published November 23, 2014 at 7:02 PM with the headline "Former legislator, advocate Mary Horne Odom dies at 93."