Friends, family share memories of Exie Little
Longtime employee at Bowman Drug is remembered
During this season of giving and everyone scurrying around in search of that perfect gift, there is a Conover family, a busy drugstore and a whole community that is grateful for a gift they lost on December 1. Exie Cole Little was admired and loved by so many -her loving husband, Rudy, and all her family. Those at Conover’s Bowman Drug also miss Exie. Lynne Henson who has worked at the drugstore for some time now said the other day, “We really miss Exie. She was like the figurehead of the store.”
Exie Cole Little was born in Rutherford County in May of 1944, but later moved to Catawba County. She had an uncommon name that not many had heard before. “It was her mother’s name,” her family explained.
While she was working at the Main Street Grill in Conover in the mid-1960s, Rudy Little caught her eye.“I liked to go in and pester her,” Rudy joked. On Friday, November 22, 1963, (the day of President Kennedy’s assassination), Rudy asked Exie to marry him. They were married the following year on April 19, 1964 at Faith Lutheran Church and that marriage was going strong 59 years later until her December 1st death.
Rudy and Exie had two sons, Derrick and Steven, and Michael Sharpe and his wife, Diane whom she loved for many years like her own children. She was always devoted to her family and home and was a fastidious cleaner. She also liked to work in the yard and loved working with and planting beautiful flowers.
One of her joys was her “fur babies” as she called them. Her current Yorkies which Rudy now tends and enjoys are Happy and Cloe. In
Little
the past she had other pets and one dog was named Zoey, and another named Presley for Elvis whom she loved.
One thing that Exie was known for throughout her life was her steadfast work ethic. She had worked at Bowman Drug for every owner through the years and was planning to retire in December until her health caught up with her. Her children said she was working right up to two months before her death.
Josh Waters, owner and pharmacist at the drugstore, said Exie was one of a kind. “She was so dependable that even if it snowed, she’d find a way to be here” He laughed and said that every year she would say she was going to retire, but really never meant it -- until this year. “She meant it this year,” he said, “And she had lost a lot of weight and was diagnosed with cancer on September 26.”
Josh said that Exie was always busy, always working and never stood still. “She would always be cleaning shelves, cleaning the bath