Celeste Mason Pittman

ROCKY MOUNT - Celeste Mason Pittman of Rocky Mount, North Carolina, passed away on Wednesday, January 10, 2024 after a prolonged illness, at the age of 78. Celeste was born in Los Angeles on May 10, 1945, where her father served as a special agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation during World War II. After the war, the family returned to their home of Laurinburg, NC, where Celeste grew up and graduated from Laurinburg High School in 1963. Celeste attended Wake Forest University and graduated in 1967 with a bachelor’s degree in history. Celeste valued her father’s strong belief that higher education could transform lives and formed her own lasting bond with Wake Forest that she would hold dear for the rest of her life. Celeste went on to serve the university first as a member of the Alumni Council, ultimately becoming the Council’s president, and later was appointed to the university’s Board of Trustees, serving four four-year terms before being named a Life Trustee in recognition of her dedicated service to Wake Forest. In 1969, Celeste married William Bryan Pittman, while he was a medical student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A junior high school teacher before her marriage, she earned her master’s degree in Education while living in Chapel Hill. As Will’s post-graduate medical education and fulfillment of his military assignments in the U.S. Army took them to various posts, she continued teaching, including young U.S. soldiers studying to obtain their General Education Diploma, while she and Will were stationed abroad in Hanau, West Germany. In addition to education, Celeste firmly believed in the importance of serving her local community and after settling in Rocky Mount in 1979, she was an active participant, giving generously and unconditionally of her time, energy and resources. A charter advisory board member of the Futrell-Mauldin Community Foundation for Greater Rocky Mount, she served a term as Vice Chairman, and remained on the board up until her passing. She was a past president of the Nash County Medical Society Auxiliary, a member of the Rocky Mount Junior Guild, a member of the Colonial Dames of America in the state of North Carolina and a dedicated servant leader of First United Methodist Church of Rocky Mount, where she served on the Board of Trustees and participated frequently in bible study groups, Sunday school class and always made worship service a top priority when home. Enthusiastic travelers, Celeste and Will explored the world together, visiting every continent except Antarctica. While closer to home, she was a dedicated bridge player, a voracious reader and a frequent and gracious hostess. Above all, Celeste cherished spending time with her grandchildren, to whom she was simply their beloved Cece. She imparted to them the importance of family, community, strong friendships, pragmatism, and hard work, always with a sense of fun and adventure. Celeste is survived by her husband of 54 years, William Bryan Pittman; two children and their spouses, Nell Pittman Sutlive and Charlie of Atlanta, and William Bryan Pittman, Jr. and Laura of Charlotte; four grandchildren: Charles Edward Sutlive, III, Celeste Mason Sutlive, Henry Mason Pittman and Elizabeth Grace Pittman; brother, James Walter Mason III, sisters-in-law: Lynn Moberg Mason, Teresa Bryan Burchette Pittman, Rosalind Bryan Pittman Reading, and brother-in-law Vance Russell Reading. Celeste was preceded in death by her parents, James Walter Mason, Jr. and Nell Adams Mason, and her brother-in-law, Erwin Brasca Pittman, Jr. A celebration of Celeste’s life will be held on Monday, January 15 at 3 p.m. at First United Methodist Church, followed by a reception at Benvenue Country Club. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Wake Forest University (please specify the Mason-Pittman Scholarship), online at giving.wfu.edu or by mail to Wake Forest University, P.O. Box 7227, Winston-Salem, NC 27109 or to First United Methodist Church, 100 South Church Street, Rocky Mount, NC 27804. Arrangements entrusted to Wheeler & Woodlief Funeral Home & Cremation Services, 1130 N. Winstead Avenue, Rocky Mount, NC 27804. You may share memories and condolences with the family by visiting www.wheelerwoodlief.com.