Please note that this post contains affiliate links and any sales made through such links will reward MageeNews.com a small commission – at no extra cost to you.
Margaret Ann Layton
Ann Hooker Layton, a longtime resident of Magee, Mississippi, passed away peacefully on March 12, 2026, at Morton Care Center in Morton, Mississippi.
She was born on January 3, 1934, in Louisville, Mississippi, to Neil and Inda Woodruff Hooker. She was preceded in death by her husband, Maurice Blake Layton.
Mrs. Layton received her Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology from Mississippi College for Women. During her college years, she met the love of her life, Maurice Blake Layton. The couple married in 1954, and she began her life as a devoted homemaker and farmer’s wife.
Known affectionately by those who loved her as “Mama Ann,” she had a passion for reading and painting. She was a faithful member of Old Good Hope Primitive Baptist Church in Magee for more than 50 years.
Found in her Bible was a beautiful testimony written in her own hand: “One day I hope to say, I finished the race as the Lord wished me to. I know I won’t have accomplished great things, but if I can have achieved what He set for me, I am happy. It’s been a long road, but a happy one. I have had a wonderful husband, great children, a full life, and peace. I bask in the love of my Lord and look forward to being with Him someday.”
Mrs. Layton was a uniquely talented lady who loved painting. When she was not cooking or helping check cattle or chickens, she could often be found sitting on the porch with a paintbrush in her hand. As we look at a beautiful sunset, we will always think of Mama Ann painting along with her Lord and Savior with a stroke of the Master’s hand.
She is survived by her children, Blake Layton and wife Maureen; Anita Layton Webb and husband Bob; and Kelvin Dirk Layton and wife Tammy.
She is also survived by two grandsons, Caleb Layton (Sara) and Brian Layton (Melissa); and five granddaughters, Samantha Ann Webb Laird, Holly Webb Morgan (Thomas), Amanda Layton Berry (Ben), Grace Layton Langford (Andy), and Hetty Ann Layton Thompson (Michael).
She was bountifully blessed with eleven great-grandchildren: Webb Laird, Blakely Berry, Weldon Berry, Houston Morgan, Freya Thompson, Kit Thompson, Zorah Langford, Robbye Ann Morgan, Luca Thompson, Runa Thompson, and one great-grandchild, Huk.
Funeral services will be held Monday, March 16, 2026, at Old Good Hope Primitive Baptist Church, 206 Good Hope Road, Mendenhall, Mississippi. Visitation will be from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., with the service following at 11:30 a.m. Elder Shane Arnold, pastor of Old Good Hope Primitive Baptist Church, and Elder Luke Laird will conduct the service. Interment will follow at Old Good Hope Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery.
Pallbearers will be Caleb Layton, Brian Layton, Andy Langford, Ben Berry, Thomas Morgan, and Michael Thompson. Honorary pallbearer will be Mark Brown.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Old Good Hope Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery and mailed to Kelvin Dirk Layton, Box 153, Magee, Mississippi 39111.
MageeNews.com is the online news source for Simpson and surrounding counties as well as the State of Mississippi.
