Melba Cullum Spore passed away on September 19, 2024 after nearly a half-century battle with multiple sclerosis. She was 89 years old.
Melba was born and raised in Nashville. When she was five years old, her father, Ollie Cullum (whom Melba idolized), died unexpectedly, leaving Melba’s mother, Lillian, the single mom of two small children, Melba and her beloved little brother, Ronnie. Melba inherited a large part of her fierce determination from Lillian, who never remarried.
Melba always loved to draw and was a gifted artist. As an adult, she used this talent to help support herself and her family as a successful commercial artist. Back in the days when there were department stores that advertised in newspapers, Melba drew the latest fashions for stores like Cain-Sloan and Castner-Knott in Nashville and Lowenstein’s, Goldsmith’s, and SteinMart in Memphis.
A voracious reader, Melba particularly loved history. In her thirties, this passion for history developed into an obsession with genealogy. Those were the days before genealogy was done via the personal computer, and Melba dragged her then small son (who was not at all interested in genealogy) through courthouses and cemeteries across Tennessee, North Carolina, and Indiana. One of Melba’s proudest accomplishments was tracing her genealogy back through the American Revolution (and beyond) and joining the Daughters of the American Revolution. Melba remained a militant member of the Watauga Chapter of the DAR as long as her health permitted.
Impacted as she was by her father’s early and unexpected death, Melba’s number one priority was always her children and grandchildren. In fact, despite being presented with abundant evidence to the contrary, Melba was always adamant that she had the best possible children and grandchildren available and was something of a “tiger mom” before that term even existed. All the more reason why she was never the same after the premature death of her beautiful daughter, Stephanie Davis, last year. Fortunately, her last weeks were brightened by the recent birth of her first great-grandchild, Cort Conrad.
Melba is survived by her brother, Ron Cullum (Dianne), her son, Richard (Trish), her son-in-law, Robert Davis, her two granddaughters, Caroline Spore (Trip Conrad) and Rebekah Cooley (Will), and her great-grandson, Cort Conrad. Melba will be greatly missed by all of her family, who were inspired daily by her grit and grace.
The family plans a private memorial service in Nashville. https://www.springhillfh.com
In lieu of flowers, please send memorials to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (nationalmssociety.org) or King’s Daughters’ and Sons’ Home (3568 Appling Rd., Memphis, TN 38133), where Melba received excellent care during the last years of her illness. Her family appreciates the kindness and dedication of all of her caregivers.
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