Brenda Lee Vath

If you ever had the privilege of knowing our beautiful, spitfire, redheaded Momma, then you know how fun and creative she was. The birthdays, cookouts, and holidays she planned were something that family and friends always had a wonderful time attending.

Mom was 85 years old, when she suddenly and unexpectantly passed away on April 30, 2026, in Richmond, Virginia. The world is a quieter and less flavorful place without her.

Mom was born on October 9, 1940, in Beckley, West Virginia. She was the only child of Arthur L. Teubert and Evelyn V. Holladay. She first married Carlos Farley in 1959; they were married for 25 years and had five children. She later married the love of her life, Paul Vath, for 29 years until his death.

Mom worked for Signet Bank for 20 years and retired when her husband, Paul, did. After retirement they loved to travel. She attended Staples Mill Road Baptist Church, in which, she was heavily involved with. She sang Soprano in the choir and oversaw the drama department where she made many costumes, organized and prepared church members for the numerous amounts of plays that were performed every year. She attended three mission trips to Thailand, for which she was extremely proud of.

Mom was a member of the Richmond Choral Society in the 1970’s, where she sang in multiple performances, including operas. She had a beautiful voice, and it was always amazing to hear and watch her sing. During her time performing, she was also involved in the Eastern Star of Richmond, Virginia around the same time. She was an amazing seamstress. She made many of our clothes as children but would also make curtains, and many other items around the house. She was very creative in making flower arrangements, wreaths and displayed them around her home. She was artistic and could draw and paint flowers and scenery with houses and mountains.

She had a huge passion for gardening. Her favorite flower was Red Geraniums. She could grow anything and had an amazing green thumb. Her backyard looked like an English garden. Her husband, Paul, built brick walkways in between all the flower beds, and she planted numerous flowers, bushes, and trees. It was a true beauty to behold.

Mom always made holidays fun, even as we grew into adults and had children of our own. The décor, games, gifts always had so much thought put into them for all of us. The way she decorated for Christmas always made it feel warm, and cozy, with all of us getting together to enjoy the season. Easter was always a wonderful, fun time. She would give each grandchild an Easter basket and would add a toy to the handle every year. That was the basket they would use to do the easter egg hunt at their house and when they turned 18, they received the basket. They would also have an adult Easter egg hunt, which was always a blast for us. We continue this family tradition to this day.

Anyone that knew our mother knew that she was a social butterfly. She never met a stranger and loved to laugh, converse, and joke around. She had a funny personality at times which was handed down by her mother and great aunts, who were very witty. Many of those family reunions were a riot to be around. Mom was a tough cookie. She could be proud, and stubborn, but she was also a loving mom who could also give great, big hugs. Especially in your time of need. Those will be missed.

Mom was preceded in death by her parents Arthur and Evelyn, her husband, Paul Vath, her daughter, Sally Hyman. She is survived by her sons, Eric (Donna), Darrell (Tammy); her daughters, Susan, and Michele (Chris). Thirteen grandchildren, Cody (Melissa), Casey (Trevor), Logan (Taylor), Megan, Courtney (Tyler), Matthew, Olivia (Ryan), Jared (Micaela), Gavin, Madison, Taylor, Brandon, and Savannah. Twelve great grandchildren, Grant, Kennedy, Lilly, Emma, Lucy, Sadie, Analeigh, Wyatt, Owen, Grayson, Zoey, and Colton.

A celebration of life will be held privately with family and friends. Thank you to everyone who has reached out to us to express your sympathies and love. We all greatly appreciate it. It has been a difficult time, but it is a blessing to know that she is in heaven with our Lord and Savior. Momma, you will be deeply missed and forever loved. Life will never be the same. God Bless you. Looking forward to the day we will see you and all our family again.