Family says mother was a friend of the community

By Jackson Sveen

CORNELIUS – Frances Barnes Edmund, of Huntersville, died Oct. 23 after suffering injuries in a car crash on Statesville Road between West Catawba Avenue and Westmoreland Road in Cornelius. She was 77.

Born Dec. 13, 1935, Edmund “lived for her children, grandchildren and sports,” her son Richard Edmund said.



Edmund worked for 15 years with her daughter Paula Edmund at the Edmund Center of Neuromuscular & Massage Therapy in Cornelius where she served as the office manager.

She was on her way to work when the crash occurred around 8:20 a.m.

Richard Edmund said his mother loved working with people in the community..

“She knew a lot of people from the business. She had been working there for 15 years, so (she was) just really well known in the community and she loved all the clients and therapists that worked in the facilities,” Richard Edmund said. “She reached out and met a lot of people from the business and really enjoyed being around them.”

Her family said she was a big fan of local sports, and was fond of watching
NASCAR drivers Dale Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

“She enjoyed watching all types of sports activities whether it was college or pro football or baseball,” Richard Edmund said. “She was constantly talking about the Panthers and she also loved the Atlanta Braves.”

According to Cornelius police reports, Donna Parisi, 53, of Cornelius, was driving a 2002 Chevrolet southbound on Statesville Road when she crossed the center line, hitting Edmund’s 2004 Toyota head-on. Edmund was traveling north on Statesville Road.

Edmund was transported to Carolinas Medical Center-Main, but later died from her injuries.

A third driver, Patricia Hartley, 77, of Cornelius, was injured in the crash. Hartley was transported to Presbyterian Hospital-Huntersville and released the same day.

Parisi was also transported to Presbyterian Hospital-Huntersville and released the same day.

A Presbyterian Hospital-Huntersville spokeswoman said Parisi had been admitted on Oct. 21 and released Oct. 22, the day before the accident.

Betsy Shores, administrative assistant with the Cornelius Police Department, said she could not comment on any relation between Parisi’s medical condition and the incident because the department is still investigating.

Witnesses driving behind Parisi before the crash told police that her car was weaving while traveling on Statesville Road and at crossed the center line more than once before striking Edmund’s car.

The Edmund family is originally from Chadbourn in Columbus County, where funeral services will be held.

Edmund is survived by her two daughters, Paula Edmund and Leigh Harkey; one son, Richard Edmund; and two grandchildren, Blakely Edmund and Grayson Harkey.