Lily Schelert Brown, 82, of Morganton, NC, passed away Monday, October 6, 2025. Born on June 7, 1943 in Shepetivka, Ukraine, she was the daughter of the late Brethold Schelert and Elsa Rode Schelert. During World War II, her family was forced to flee their homeland and became refugees. Through the Lutheran World Relief, the family of eight came to the United States in April 1952. Grace Lutheran Church and the community of Hebron were their sponsors. The town became the Schelerts’ new home.
Lily, who became deaf from a very early age, graduated from the Nebraska School for the Deaf in Omaha before attending Gallaudet College in Washington, D.C. Valedictorian of her class in Omaha, went on to earn a master’s in education from the University of Tennessee. Her career was dedicated to teaching deaf-and-hard-of-hearing students. She taught at the Illinois School for the Deaf for three years and twenty-five years at North Carolina School for the Deaf.
In addition to her parents, Lily was preceded in death by two sisters, Maria Nedza (2001) and Edi Grossi (2019); and a brother, Fred Schelert, 2020.
Through an adult adoption in 2018, she is survived by her daughter, Carolyn Everett-Nartey and husband Dr. Maxwell Nartey, of Orland Park, IL; granddaughter, Kellie R. Surratt of Morganton, NC; grandson, Desmond L. Everett and wife, Tyesha, of Rosedale, MD; brothers, Ewald Schelert, of Longmont, CO and Reinhart Schelert and wife, Wanda, of Albuquerque, NM; sister-in-law, Jenny Schelert of Lincoln, NE; brother-in-law, Charles Nedza of Bruning, NE; and numerous nieces, nephews and extended family.
The family will receive friends from 11:30 a.m. to 12 p.m., Saturday, October 25, 2025 at Sossoman Funeral Home. The memorial service will follow at noon in the Colonial Chapel of the funeral home with Rev. George Logan officiating. Interment will follow in Burke Memorial Park.
Sossoman Funeral Home and Crematory Center is assisting the family with the arrangements.
Tribute Wall
Leave a tribute for Lily Schelert Brown.
There she is... Heaven's a place with a beautiful blue sky A place you can see is lush green and hilly Look... and you can see her there... That's our Lily.
We will miss our beloved Grandma Lily. Many knew her as Ms. Lily Brown, but our family knew her as our loving & kind Grandma Lily. Grandma Lily greeted us with a warm, big, bright smile every time we saw her. Our Grandma Lily was kind, gracious, smart, loving, quick-witted, and had a very good sense of humor. We happily enjoyed engaging with her and every visit was filled with joyful giggles and laughter. She may be gone, but she is certainly not forgotten. We will always remember her grace, compassion, kindness, and perseverance. Our grandma embodied love and strength, and her memory lives on in the hearts of all who loved her. May our beloved Grandma Lily always rest in Eternal Heavenly Peace.
Miss Lily Brown, you’re truly an angel waking on Earth. Thank you for all that you’ve done for myself, my Wife, and our children. Your legacy of love, compassion, and success will live on. We Love you Lily Brown, The Everett Family
In Loving Memory of Ms. Lily With heavy hearts and deep reverence, we honor the life of Ms. Lily—a radiant soul whose joy was contagious and whose kindness left a lasting imprint on every heart she touched. Her spirit a balm, and her presence a blessing. May you find comfort in the beautiful memories she gifted you, strength in the love she poured so freely, and peace in knowing she now rests in eternal light. We lift you in prayer, asking God to surround you with grace, healing, and the gentle assurance that love never dies—it simply transforms. Ms. Lily’s legacy lives on in every smile she inspired, every heart she warmed, and every life she brightened. She was truly a dear heart, and her jovial spirit will echo in our hearts forever. Blessings and love to you all. Be encouraged.🕊️🙏🕊️
My deepest sympathy for your loss. I remember her as a woman who never gave up.
My deepest sympathy for your loss. Ms. Lily will always be remembered for her strength and kindness. May the warmth of cherished memories comfort you and her family during this difficult time. She was truly an awesome lady. Whenever you traveled to Maryland with her to visit, I enjoyed trying to sign language to talk with her. Sending prayers, love and hugs. May God Bless each and everyone. Much Love Theresa Everett Robinson and Family🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
My condolences to the family. Ms Lilly will be missed. That exhilarating smile and always want to lend a helping hand. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. You fought a good fight and loved your daughter Carolyn. Rest in heavenly peace!!
Dearest Lily, you were one of a kind. My life was greatly enriched by my association with you.
First of all, I need to thank my dear friend for sharing this sad news and an obituary with me. It was sad to learn that Mrs. Lily Schelert Brown, who was my Social Studies teacher at Joiner Hall and Jeter Hall on the campus of North Carolina School for the Deaf for several years, passed away. Needless to say, Mrs. Brown was an excellent teacher who was an expert at delivering different historical stories via American Sign Language fluently with no difficulty in our classroom, while I sat there in my desk, watched her telling a story with my fascination and keen imagination of how those people many years ago lived, functioned, thought and experienced their unique challenges in their daily lives, and appreciated her intelligence and courage into challenging us to think outside of a box. She not only required us to read our textbook, complete our assignments, and memorize those new vocabularies, but she also ensured that each one of us had our acuity, (sharpness or keenness of our mind, thought or vision), which put us to shift our perspectives into the same as what those ancient people had in order to understand their struggles, strategies for changing our society for betterment, and accomplishments. Indeed, she was a magnificent historical storyteller. Thank you, Mrs. Brown, for coming to our alma mater, teaching us, and ensuring that we not only learned about historical civilization, but we also understood how and why this civilization has evolved throughout many centuries.