Isabelle "Ickie" Bradsher

Isabelle "Ickie" Godfrey Bradsher, age 87, of Franklin, NC, formerly of Rabun County, GA, passed away Saturday, June 22, 2024, surrounded by her family.

She was born on January 1, 1937, in Rabun County, Georgia, the daughter of the late Frank Godfrey and Icie Wall Godfrey. She was married to the love of her life for 63 years, Benjamin Shelton Bradsher Jr., who passed away on March 23, 2024.

Ickie was a faithful member of the Lords Church at Rabun County Church of Christ in Tiger, GA. She graduated from Rabun County High School in 1955 and pursued her passion for nursing immediately after. As a nursing student in 1956, she had the honor of scrubbing in for the first open-heart surgery performed in the Southeastern United States at St. Joseph's Infirmary. Upon graduating in 1959, her classmates recognized her as the most professional, a testament to the care and dedication that defined her life.

Ickie's nursing journey took her to several hospitals, including C.J. Harris Community Hospital in Sylva, NC, where she met her beloved husband, Benn. The family moved to Georgia where Ickie was Assistant Director of Nursing at Griffen Spalding County Hospital in 1970. In 1975 she accepted the Director of Nursing with Molena Care Home, a role in which she excelled and was named Long-term Care Nurse of the Year for Georgia in 1993.

Throughout her life, Ickie was known for her unwavering commitment to caring for others, a characteristic that left a lasting impact on everyone she encountered. Her legacy of compassion and professionalism will be remembered by all who knew her.

She is survived by one son, Tim Bradsher (Amy) of Winnsboro, TX; one daughter, Ginger Bradsher Johnson (Tom) of Franklin, NC; grandchildren, Jackie McGhee (Rick) of Cannon Air Force Base in Clovis, New Mexico, Tyler Morris (Eric) of Caddo Mills, TX, Brandon Johnson (Kara) of Gallatin, TN, Benjamin Johnson (Autumn) of Franklin, NC, and Bradsher Johnson of Franklin, NC; eight great-grandchildren; and one sister, Mary Sue Bradley of Clayton, GA.

The pallbearers will be Joey Gibson, Matt Reynolds, Matt Bradley, Travis Hedden, Jason Roach, Fallon Bradsher, Brad Johnson and Benjamin Johnson.

The family would like to mention caregivers, Heaven Scent, Carol Dollar, Miranda Cook, Becky Sanders, Lauren Crunkleton, Jackie Gass, Joey Gibson, Chandler Ellenburg, Matt Reynolds, and John Dowdle who all had a hand in taking exceptional care of Ickie. 

A special thank you to Nurse, Liane Koenig Macedo, RN/CM and the staff of Four Seasons Hospice for care during this time. 

Funeral services will be held on Sunday, June 30, 2024, at 2:00 PM at Woodland Church of Christ, 146 Weldon Hall Rd., Sylva, NC 28779, with Brandon Johnson and McKinley Pate officiating. Interment will follow at Antioch United Methodist Church in Clayton, GA.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in honor of Isabelle Bradsher to Rabun County Church of Christ, PO Box 266, Tiger, GA 30576.

During this time, Hunter Funeral Home is honored to serve the family of Isabelle Bradsher. Feel free to share your sympathies with the family through the provided website: www.hunterfuneralhomega.com.