Lataya Sims

Obituary For Lataya Sims

“The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.”- Job 1:21

On Thursday afternoon, August 8, 2019, God brought His own back unto Himself-this beautiful spirit, embodied in the person of one LaTaya Shonta Sims. Miss Sims, of 118 Victor Drive, Boiling Springs, North Carolina, was born on Friday, January 26, 1979 in the former Cleveland Memorial Hospital (Atrium Health-Cleveland), the youngest of four children born to Mary Jane Edwards and the late Joseph Daniel Sims.

“Shonk” (the nickname given to her by her cousin, the late Ricky Sims) was a native of Lawndale, North Carolina, and a 1997 graduate of Burns High School, where she was actively involved in the Choral department. After graduating, she studied culinary arts at the Turner Job Corps Center in Albany, Georgia. She was also a cosmetology student at Cleveland Community College in Shelby, NC and was a talented hairdresser for many years. She worked for many years as the “HCIC” at the Bulldog Quik Snak in Boiling Springs, NC. In her later years, she was employed by Nestle Frozen Foods in Gaffney, South Carolina as a checkweigher machine operator. She worked there diligently until her health declined. She was also a faithful caregiver to her mother at the time of her transitioning.

Shonk loved the Lord and gave her life to Christ at an early age, joining the Green Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Boiling Springs. There, she was active in the Youth & Young Adult Missionary Departments and the Music Department, having sang in all of the church choirs throughout her life. She love to sing, and could harmonize with just about anyone (but would be quick to give you that “look” if you were off-key).

She loved life and the people in it. She was fun-loving, and her spirit was infectious. You couldn’t be around Shonk and not have a good time, because she was able to make even the most timid person feel at ease. She was also a very strong woman, having defeated cancer twice when she wasn’t expected to survive the first bout. All the while going through her own health challenges, she still managed to be a warrior for her children and ailing mother.

In addition to her beloved father and two siblings, she is welcomed into Paradise by a niece, Kendria Fulton; maternal grandparents, Zay Dock and Mary Louis Eaves Edwards; paternal grandparents, Deacon Earl Randall & Lillie Louise Daniel Sims; maternal aunts, & uncles, Dorothy Ann Edwards-Martin (the late R.C.), Evelyn Ellen Edwards, Charles, Henry Carl and Richard Edwards; paternal aunt and uncle, Mildred Irene Sims Portee and Clifton Sims; special cousins, Carl Marie & Tosha Edwards, Darlene, Kathy and Beverly Sims.

In addition to her beloved mother, Shonk leaves behind a beautiful legacy in the form of two children she adored, Nayshaun RahJae “Munch” and Aaleiyah Keyshonda Marie “LeiLei” Camp of the home; her fiancé, Rafus “Jimmy” Camp, Jr; three brothers, Acorea Darren Sims (fiancé, Bobby Smith) of Greensboro, NC, Clarence Whitworth of Shelby, and Joseph Randolph Lee of Lawndale; a “bonus” child, Anijah Camp of Shelby, NC; two nieces, Shalonda Brown of Winston-Salem, NC and Sheka Howze of Waco, NC; a nephew, Cameron Lee; maternal aunts, Emile Edwards Rice (the late JB) of Lattimore, NC, Julia, Janet and Linda Edwards of Boiling Springs, Margaret Edwards Freeman (the late Ronnie) of Kingstown, NC, Mrs. Helen Jones Edwards of Shelby & Mrs. Linda Gidney Edwards of Providence, RI; maternal uncle, Jerry Edwards of Boiling Springs; paternal uncles & aunts, James Earl and Matthew (the late Helen Sims) of Shelby, Bill (the late Annie Pearl), George (Beatrice), Charles, Tyree (Sarah) and Hazel Lattimore Sims all of Lawndale; paternal great-aunt, Mrs. Mattie Mae “Doll” Sims Odemns of Chase City, VA; maternal great-aunt, Mrs. Corine McDowell Cabiness of Shelby; cousins who she helped rear, Kasondra Wright of Charlotte, NC, Tyrell Wright of Spartanburg, SC, and Asia Wright of Boiling Springs; two grandchildren, Karsyn & Khloe Camp; additional siblings, and a host of other special cousins, relatives and friends. She will be greatly missed by us all, but we eagerly await the reunion.

Funeral services will be held on Friday, August 16, 2019 at 1:00 PM at Green Bethel Baptist Church. The family will receive friends from 12:00 Noon until 1:00 PM at the church.