THELMA LEE Winston Sargent, a licensed practical nurse who worked in nursing homes and at Delaware County Memorial Hospital, a child prodigy who taught herself to play the piano, died Dec. 11 at the age of 91.
Thelma's skill on the piano led her to provide the music for the morning assembly at the Darby Township public schools while still a child.
She learned to play the piano by ear at the age of 5, and she played for and directed several church choirs in the Philadelphia area.
Thelma was born in Philadelphia to Edwin and Charity Winston. She grew up in Darby Township. She was one of the first African-American employees of Delaware County Memorial Hospital in Drexel Hill.
She married the late Harold R. Holmes in 1938.
Thelma was an active churchwoman, first at Emanuel Baptist in Darby Township, and later with 90th Street Mount Hermon Baptist in Philadelphia, where she directed the senior choir.
She is survived by two daughters, Wilma Jones and Margaret Hardcastle; three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Services: 10 a.m. Saturday at 90th Street Mount Hermon Baptist Church, 6232 Jefferson St. Friends may call at 9 a.m. Burial will be in Fernwood Cemetery.
