Natasha Michelle Anderson Obituary 2026: Summerville, GA Mourns Tasha, Beloved Wife of Larry Anderson, Mother of Cameron & Sophia Anderson.

SUMMERVILLE, Ga. — The quiet hills of Chattooga County are heavy with grief this week as family, friends, and neighbors mourn the loss of Natasha Michelle Anderson, known to all who loved her as Tasha, who passed away peacefully at her residence in Summerville on May 8, 2026, at the age of 47. Her death, while peaceful in its final moments, has left a crater in the lives of those who depended on her warmth, her humor, and her unwavering presence.

Born on November 24, 1978, in Rome, Georgia, Tasha was the beloved daughter of the late Johnny “Buck” Roach and Jewel Dean Teems Roach. A lifelong resident of Chattooga County, she was as much a part of Summerville as the old oak trees lining Commerce Street. To know Tasha was to know someone who put family first—not as a slogan, but as a daily, sometimes exhausting, always joyful practice.

Early Years in Chattooga County: Roots of a Caregiver

Growing up in the rolling pastures and close-knit communities of northwest Georgia, Tasha learned early the value of hard work and helping hands. Her father, Johnny “Buck” Roach, was a well-known mechanic and former volunteer firefighter who taught Tasha how to fix an engine and, more importantly, how to fix a bad day with a well-timed joke. Her mother, Jewel Dean Teems Roach, worked as a nurse’s aide at a local nursing home, often bringing a young Tasha along to visit elderly residents who had no family of their own.

Those who remember Tasha as a child describe a girl with a quick smile and an even quicker instinct to comfort. A former neighbor, Martha Jean Holloway, recalled: “When my husband passed in 1987, little Tasha—she couldn’t have been more than eight or nine—showed up at my door with a plate of cookies her mama helped her bake. She said, ‘Miss Martha, I’m sorry your heart hurts. I brought sugar.’ That was Tasha. She just knew what people needed.”

Tasha attended Chattooga High School, where she was known not as a standout athlete or academic but as the student who remembered everyone’s birthday, who brought extra snacks for friends who forgot theirs, and who stood up quietly for kids being bullied. She graduated in 1997 and briefly attended Georgia Northwestern Technical College before deciding that her true calling was closer to home: building a family.

Meeting Larry Anderson: A Love Story Built on Laughter

Tasha met her future husband, Larry Anderson, in the spring of 1999 at a county fair in nearby Trion. Larry, a soft-spoken maintenance supervisor at a local textile plant, was immediately drawn to Tasha’s laugh—a full, uninhibited sound that seemed to echo across the fairgrounds. He approached her at the ring-toss booth, and according to family lore, he won her a small stuffed bear on his third try, then promptly tripped over a tent stake and sent both of them into a laughing fit that lasted ten minutes.

They married on October 14, 2000, at Summerville First Baptist Church, in a small ceremony attended by fewer than fifty people—exactly as Tasha wanted. “She never wanted a big fuss,” Larry told this news organization in an exclusive interview. “She said the wedding wasn’t what mattered; it was the marriage. And she meant it. Every single day for twenty-five years, she meant it.”

Their marriage was not without hardship. Larry’s father, James “Bud” Anderson, passed away unexpectedly in 2005, devastating the family. Tasha immediately took on the role of emotional anchor, organizing meals, handling funeral arrangements, and sitting with her mother-in-law for hours each day for weeks afterward. Bud had been a father figure to Tasha after her own father’s death in 2001, and she once told a friend, “Losing Bud was like losing Buck all over again. But you keep going. That’s what family does.”

Raising Cameron and Sophia: Tasha’s Greatest Joy

Tasha’s children—Cameron Anderson and Sophia Anderson—were the center of her universe. Cameron, now 22, had just graduated from college two weeks before his mother’s death. Sophia, 19, is a sophomore at the University of North Georgia. In their tributes to their mother, both children painted a picture of a woman who turned ordinary moments into memories.

Cameron wrote in a private social media post that has since been shared hundreds of times: “Mom showed up to every baseball game, even the ones where I sat on the bench. She drove me to early morning practices when it was still dark outside, and she never once complained. She made chocolate chip pancakes every Saturday, rain or shine. She taught me how to treat people, how to apologize when I was wrong, and how to laugh at myself. I am who I am because of her.”

Sophia, reached by phone, added: “People think ‘gentle’ means weak. My mom was the gentlest person I knew, but she was also the strongest. When I was struggling with anxiety in high school, she didn’t lecture me. She just sat with me. She’d make tea and we’d watch bad reality TV until I felt better. She never made me feel like a burden. Ever.”

Simple Pleasures: A Jeep, a Dog, and an Open Door

Tasha was not a woman of grand gestures or expensive tastes. Her happiness came from life’s simple pleasures. She was rarely seen without her beloved dog, Ollie—a scrappy rescue mutt she adopted from the Chattooga County Animal Shelter in 2015. Ollie went everywhere with Tasha: to the grocery store (where Tasha pretended not to see the “no pets” sign), to the post office, and on her favorite adventures.

Those adventures often took place in her jeep—a well-worn, slightly rusted 2008 Wrangler that Tasha called “Old Blue.” She loved nothing more than taking the top down on a warm Georgia evening and driving the back roads of Chattooga County, sometimes with Larry, sometimes with the kids, and often just with Ollie riding shotgun. Friends say she knew every hidden waterfall, every wild blueberry patch, and every abandoned country store within a forty-mile radius.

Her home on Summerville’s quiet east side was known to neighbors as a place where the porch light stayed on late and the door was always unlocked. “If you were having a hard time, Tasha’s couch was your couch,” said longtime friend Rebecca “Becki” Howard. “She’d feed you, listen to you, and then she’d tell you something so funny you’d forget why you were sad. She had a gift.”

The Final Days: Peaceful Passing at Home

According to family spokesperson Lisa Williamson—Tasha’s sister—Natasha Michelle Anderson passed away peacefully at her residence on the morning of May 8, 2026. She had been ill for several months with complications from a chronic condition that the family has chosen not to disclose publicly, respecting Tasha’s lifelong preference for privacy regarding her health.

“Tasha didn’t want anyone to worry about her,” Lisa explained. “Even at the end, she was more concerned about how everyone else was doing. She asked about the kids, about Larry, about her friends. She made us promise not to make a big production out of her passing. But we’re her family, so we’re going to honor her loudly anyway—because she deserves that.”

Larry Anderson was by her side, holding her hand. Cameron and Sophia had visited the night before, sharing pizza and watching an old comedy film that Tasha had loved since her own childhood. “She was laughing,” Cameron recalled. “That’s my last memory of her. Laughing.”

The Chattooga County Coroner’s Office confirmed the cause of death as natural causes related to her underlying illness. No autopsy was performed at the family’s request. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Coffman Funeral Home in Summerville.

Preceded in Death: A Family Reunited

Tasha was preceded in death by her parents, Johnny “Buck” Roach (who passed in 2001) and Jewel Dean Teems Roach (2018); her father-in-law, James “Bud” Anderson (2005); and her special uncle, Wallace Money (2020). Wallace Money, her mother’s younger brother, was particularly close to Tasha; he taught her how to fish, how to drive a stick shift, and how to appreciate the quiet beauty of a sunrise over Lookout Mountain.

Family members say the thought of Tasha being reunited with Buck, Jewel, Bud, and Wallace has brought them some measure of comfort. “She’s with her people now,” said her brother, Greg Williamson. “But that doesn’t mean we don’t miss her like crazy down here.”

Survivors: A Family Anchored in Love

Tasha leaves behind a large, devoted family who will carry her memory forward:

· Her devoted husband of 25 years, Larry Anderson of Summerville
· Her son, Cameron Anderson of Atlanta
· Her daughter, Sophia Anderson of Dahlonega (currently attending University of North Georgia)
· Her sisters, Cindy Evans of Trion and Lisa Williamson of Summerville
· Her brother, Greg Williamson of Rome
· Numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family members, and a wide circle of dear friends

She also leaves behind Ollie, her rescued dog, who has barely left the spot on the couch where Tasha used to sit. Larry has promised friends that Ollie will stay in the family, sleeping on Tasha’s pillow every night.

Visitation and Memorial Service Details

The family will receive friends and loved ones for visitation on Monday, May 11, 2026, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Coffman Funeral Home, located at 128 Keith Drive in Summerville.

A memorial service honoring Tasha’s life will be held at a later date, in accordance with the family’s wishes. Details will be announced through Coffman Funeral Home and local media once arrangements are finalized.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations be made to the Chattooga County Animal Shelter (where Tasha adopted Ollie) or to the Chattooga County Family Resource Center, an organization Tasha supported for years.

Community Reaction: ‘A Heart as Big as This Whole County’

News of Tasha’s death spread quickly through Summerville, a town where everyone knows everyone. A local coffee shop on Commerce Street started a memory board where residents have pinned notes, photographs, and small mementos in Tasha’s honor.

Mayor Harry B. Thompson Jr. released a brief statement: “Natasha Anderson represented the best of Summerville: kindness without fanfare, strength without harshness, and love without conditions. She will be deeply missed by our entire community.”

A longtime coworker from Tasha’s years at a local daycare center, Donna Marie Strickland, recalled: “Tasha worked with toddlers—the hardest job in the world, if you ask me. But she never lost her patience. Not once. She’d get on the floor with a crying child and just sit there until the child felt safe. That’s who she was. A safe place.”

Another friend, Jennifer Lynn Cooper, said through tears: “Tasha was the first person I called when I got my cancer diagnosis. She was at my door within an hour with groceries and a hug. She said, ‘You’re not doing this alone.’ And I didn’t. She checked on me every single day for six months. Who does that? Tasha did. That’s who.”

A Final Goodbye

Natasha Michelle Anderson lived 47 years—not a long life by any measure, but a full one. She filled those years with laughter, with loyalty, with home-cooked meals and late-night drives. She raised two children who will spend the rest of their lives trying to be as kind as she was. She loved a husband who will miss her until his own last breath. And she left behind a community that is better, gentler, and more loving because she walked through it.

A line from Tasha’s favorite poem—Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken”—was found written on a scrap of paper in her nightstand drawer, next to her Bible and a framed photo of Larry and the kids. The line read: “I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”

Tasha took the path of a caregiver, a homemaker, a devoted wife and mother. In a world that often celebrates noise and ambition, she chose quiet devotion. And that, as she knew, made all the difference.

Her family has requested privacy as they navigate this difficult time, but they have also expressed deep gratitude for the outpouring of support from the Summerville community.

“She would have hated all this attention,” Larry Anderson said, smiling sadly. “But she also would have loved knowing how much people cared. That was Tasha—embarrassed by praise, but hungry for connection.”

Rest peacefully, Tasha. Your work here is done. And it was more than enough.