Effie Benita (Leviner) Higginbotham was born in Bennettsville, South Carolina on November 18, 1935, to the late Troy L. Leviner and Beulah Horne Leviner. The legacy she created influenced many people during her 87 years on earth and gained her the reputation of being “an angel sent from heaven.”
Throughout her life, Mrs. Effie always left an impression on any and every one that she met. Whether it was through her job as secretary in the Lincoln County School District, her role as a preacher’s wife, or simply as a mother, grandmother, and great grandmother, Mrs. Effie made sure that those around her experienced selfless love. She treated everyone as a close family member, and if that was not enough, her homemade biscuits made her quite popular within her community. She, along with her husband, Rev. Floyd Higginbotham, served others with unwavering faith and love, and those qualities are what made her life a legacy to remember.
She is preceded in death by her parents, grandson Timothy Johnsey; sisters Mary White and Odessa Son; and brother, Edward “Butch” Liles.
Those who are left to cherish her memory are her husband of 69 years, Floyd Higginbotham; children, Sam Higginbotham (Shirley), Tim Higginbotham (Wanda), Benita Johnsey(Tommy), and Beth Wicker; sister, Vernie Elliot; 12 grandchildren and 19 great grandchildren. She also leaves a host of other loving family members and the many friendships created throughout her ministry.
Friends and family are invited to attend visitation at Riverwood Family Funeral Services in Brookhaven, MS, on Wednesday, September 6, 2023, from 5-7 p.m. Her celebration of life will be Thursday, September 7, 2023, at Pleasant Hill Baptist Church at 11:00 a.m., with her burial at the church cemetery afterwards.
