Nell Davis Gaines

Nell Davis Gaines, 93, of Bainbridge, passed away Friday, January 23, 2026.

The funeral service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 31, 2026, at Bryant Funeral Home Chapel with Dr. Joshua Chatraw and Rev. Conrad Salter officiating. Interment will follow at Prosperity Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery with Nell’s grandsons and great-grandsons serving as active pallbearers.

The family will receive friends immediately following the service. Online visitors may sign the guest register at www.bryantfuneralga.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Prosperity Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery Fund, C/O Dorothy Morris, 369 Martin Road, Bainbridge, GA 39817.

Mary Nell Brinkley was born on December 19, 1932, in Faceville, Georgia, to Pauline and Lonnie Brinkley. On March 20, 1949, a few months before graduating from Bainbridge High School, she married Cecil Wilburn Davis of the Mount Pleasant community. After living in Bainbridge for a few years, they moved to Macon but then returned to Decatur County in 1968 to live near the Davis farm. On March 26, 1986, the Lord called her beloved Cecil home. Several years later Nell married David Gaines. Even though she kept her South Georgia home, they primarily lived in Lizella, Georgia, for the next 20 years until David’s death on February 24, 2011.

Above all, Nell loved her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and served him all her life. Her greatest desire was that everyone in her family would believe in Him and glorify Him with their lives. She was a faithful attender and Sunday school teacher at Glenwood Hills Baptist Church in Macon in the early years and later at Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church outside of Bainbridge. Then during the years married to David, they were active members of Pine Forest Baptist Church in Macon.

Nell’s greatest earthly gift was her family, for whom she generously gave herself. She cared for her mother, who lived with her for more than 30 years until her death in 1989. Nell was a resourceful cook, especially known for her sour cream pound cake, a recipe that no one in the family has been able to master. More than enjoying cooking for her large family, she loved just being with them. Once her children were grown and had children of their own, everyone in her family knew her as Mimi, and one of her greatest joys was playing with the little ones. And how they loved their Mimi!

Nell never met a stranger; she was a very sociable and industrious woman. Even though she had a busy life at home, at times through the years, she also worked as an administrative assistant at several places including Robins Air Force Base, Bainbridge Junior College, and Macon Technical College. Nell embraced technology, which she used at work and at home; she even enjoyed her iPhone well into her 90s.

Nell is survived by her children: Cecilia Murkerson (Jerry) of Hawkinsville; Debra Chatraw (Van) of Ponte Vedra, FL; Barbara McNair (Randall) of Staunton, VA; and Clay Davis (Denise) of Savannah; David’s children: Ronald Gaines (Sheila) of Lizella; Keith Gaines (Diane) of Albany; and daughter-in-law Dorothy Gaines of Warner Robins; her 10 grandchildren and 17 great grandchildren; many step grandchildren and great grandchildren, as well as other dear family members. Besides her husbands and parents, Nell was preceded in death by her brothers: Fred Brinkley and Jack Brinkley; her sisters: Gussie Brinkley, Susan Harrell, and Ann Silver; and David’s son, Steve Gaines.

We are so thankful for our dear Mother and Mimi, who loved us unconditionally. We cling to the promise that we will see her again one day! John 3:16