Martha C. Rhodes passed on Friday, January 26, 2024, the daughter of Martha Sanders Jackson and Boulyoun Jackson, born September of 1923 in Lamar, South Carolina. The family later moved to Darlington, South Carolina, where she attended and graduated from Mayo High School in 1941. Later that year, she moved to Milford, Connecticut where she met Robert Rhodes, Sr. whom she wed in 1942. In 1984, Robert and Martha retired to St. Petersburg, Florida. After six years, they then relocated to Darlington, South Carolina for another six years, until they returned to Connecticut in 1996. They were married for 55 years until Robert’s passing in 1998.
Martha Rhodes completed her Licensed Practical Nurse training through Eli Whitney Technical School’s nursing program in 1964, administered at St. Raphael’s Hospital in New Haven. After working briefly for St. Raphael’s Hospital, she entered private duty nursing which remained her career until she retired.
Martha Rhodes was a devout and dedicated member of The Church of God from her youth early youth in South Carolina and into her retirement years. She became a member of The First Church of God in New Haven shortly after it was founded in 1955 by Brother Evans Jacob, and later pastored by the late Cecil N. Wiltshire. In 1969, she became the Director of the Senior Choir which she led for many years. She also served on the Pastor’s Aid Committee and was a member of the Missionary Society. During retirement, she and her husband attended the Church of God in Tampa, Florida under the leadership of the reverend T. Scott, and thereafter, the Church of God in Darlington, South Carolina, the Reverend Bobby Damon, pastor.
She will be remembered for her love of family, friends, church, singing, baking, and crocheting, among many other things. She is predeceased by her husband Robert Rhodes, Sr. and her eldest son, Robert Rhodes, Jr. She is survived by son Clifton Rhodes (Kathleen) of South Holland, Illinois; daughters, Martha Rhodes Williams of New Haven, and Yvonne Rhodes Philpot (William, deceased) of Hamden; daughter-in-law, Barbara Rhodes (Robert, deceased) of New Haven; Dennis Rhodes of Santa Rosa, CA; and Ronald (Lori), of New Haven. She is survived by grandchildren Robert, Christopher, Matthew, Alice, and Martha as well as many nieces, nephews, and great grandchildren.
