Idell Elizabeth McDonald Shook

In Loving Memory of

Idell Elizabeth McDonald Shook

Idell Shook passed away peacefully at her home in Hiawassee, Georgia, on Saturday, October 24, 2026, at the age of 89. She was born on October 20, 1937, in Hiawassee, Georgia, to the late Dollie and Larry McDonald. When Idell was 10 years old, her family moved to Clay County, North Carolina, to the road that now bears their name: McDonald Road.

At the young age of 17, she met Fred “Dee” Shook at a tent revival in the Woods Grove community. They married on December 27, 1955, and made their home in Hiawassee, Georgia, where they raised their three children. Idell was a member of the Hiawassee Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star, where she served in various stations, including Worthy Matron.

Idell enjoyed reading and painting. She loved to “piddle,” as she called it, around her house and among her flowers. She was a faithful member of Union Hill Methodist Church.

After retiring in 2000, Idell began writing essays but discovered that her true gift was writing poetry. Her compassion for people and her love of God flowed through her words. In her poem “Gratitude to the Giver,” these words are found: “Thank you Lord for the gift. Humble and patient I will be. When You speak to me, I will write for Thee.”

Idell desired for her poetry to inspire, touch, and bless all who read her words. Her book of poetry, Rivers of My Heart, was published in 2002. The poems reflect Idell’s life and the faith that anchored her through many trials and losses. “Porch Memories,” a tribute to her late parents-in-law, Garland and Zuria Shook, was published in the Towns County Herald in 2022. Her writings are also featured in the publication Reflections From the Mountains, by the Georgia Mountain Writers Club, of which she was an active member for many years.

Idell has left this world. She no longer needs the words of her poetry; she has left them to you and to me. It was her hope that they would speak to us as they once spoke to her.

Rest well, Lady Poet.

In addition to her parents, Idell was preceded in death by her husband of 41 years, Fred “Dee” Shook; her daughter, Beth Shook; her sisters, Odell Shook (her beloved twin), Reva Lois Price, Juanita Sistrunk, and Magnolia Rhodes; and her daughter-in-law, Patricia Shook.

Idell is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Cheryl and Jeff Roberts; her son, Mitchell Shook; her grandchildren, Jenny and Cody Roberts; her great-grandchildren, Josephine and Remington Roberts; her sisters, Joy Crow and Jeanette Fonville; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

Visitation: Thursday, October 29, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Banister-Cooper Funeral Home in Hiawassee, Georgia.

Service: Thursday, October 29, 2026, at 1:30 p.m. at Union Hill Methodist Church in Hiawassee, Georgia.

Officiating: Pastor Sharon Loyley.

Interment: To follow at Burch Cemetery.