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BY ROZELLA HARDIN
Editorial Director
rozella.hardin@elizabethton.com
Earline Haynes was one determined woman at times. She began her work career as a lab technician, but when she moved from North Carolina to Tennessee in the 1970s to take care of a family member, she was unable to find a job in her field. When she confided to a friend that she had a debt to pay and no job, he suggested she join the military. And, that she did!
Haynes joined the Army Reserves and it became her life. “Her friends couldn’t believe it,” said her daughter, Missy Boone. She was stationed in Johnson City and the pay was pretty good for one weekend of drills a month. That was in 1974.
But, then came Operation Desert Storm and it was off to Kuwait in 1990. “It was something that none of us were prepared for. Mom was a member of the MASH unit. The medical field was always a way for Mom to satisfy her desires to help others. Not only did her unit take care of the soldiers, but they took care of the locals,” said Missy.
In fact, Haynes assisted in the delivery of many foreign babies while serving overseas.
Her second deployment also was during the Iraqi War, also called Iraqi Freedom, which lasted from 2003 to 2011. At 59 years old, Haynes told a STAR reporter in an article for the series “On The Wall,” that she figured she would be sent home immediately when they discovered how old she was. Wrong. She passed all the tests and was assigned to a unit out of Florida.
She was injured twice during their deployment, but she came home with lots of memories, and retired in 2010 with the rank of Master Sergeant.
Haynes died Jan. 27 at the Mountain Home VA Hospital.
She was an LPN and over the years worked for several clinics and agencies. In fact, she never became a nurse until after she joined the Army Reserves. “The Army paid her to go to nursing school,” said Missy.
“My mother was everything to her children and family. She didn’t back down from anything. She was very proud of her service and received a number of medals and decorations. In addition to her service to her country, she was a wonderful mother. Mom was also a caregiver to her parents, her two sons, who preceded her in death, her husband, and other family members. She doted on her grandchildren,” said Missy.
In addition to Missy, Earline had two sons, Mark and Dee Haynes. Her husband, Elmer Haynes, died in 2005. In addition to Missy, Earline is survived by a daughter-in-law, Candy Isom, and a host of friends.
“Work consumed her life, however, Earline counted it a joy to care for others. That was what she enjoyed most. She read some, but, not a lot. In her last years, Mom suffered from dementia,” Missy said
“A nephew, who spoke at her funeral, described Mom the best when he said, ‘She loved her family, her coffee, her cigarettes, and her Days of My Life,’” Missy shared.
Earline’s parents were the late Fred A. and Jossie Morgan of Roan Mountain. She was a 1967 graduate of Cloudland High School.
“Mom was a very giving and caring mother. Nothing was too hard for her, and she always found the good in everything. She had a little song for any situation in life. She couldn’t sing very well, but she had a way of making us look on the bright side of most things. She gave a lot, but through the years had lost a lot. However, she loved to the end,” said Missy.
“We are so thankful to have had her these many years and to have been loved by her. She was a most determined woman, who gave her all whether it be at home, at work, or on the battlefield,” said Missy.