Nokomis "Nokie" Jean Warren

Nokomis Jean Warren

April 1, 1950 – May 17, 2026

Monteagle, TN

Nokomis (Nokie) Jean Warren passed away on May 17, 2026, at home in Monteagle, Tennessee. 

Nokie came into this world on April 1, 1950, in a most unpredictable predicament. Her mother, Betty Jean Dawson, gave birth to her in a toilet and the doctor’s name was Fisher. She was unique from the very beginning. 

Nokie grew up in Jasper, Tennessee with her parents (Betty and Homer Tifford Dawson) and two siblings, Johnnie (Ziegler) and Dennis Dawson. They all lived in their home on Griffith Street, the same homestead that many great grandparents before had called home. Nokie spent her childhood years playing kick the can with her sister, exploring the creeks and valleys with her cousin Jody, and walking to and from school with her childhood dog, Frisky. 

She completed four years at Marion County High School where she was a majorette, After graduating in 1969, Nokie attended Motlow Community College in Tullahoma, Tennessee. She gave birth to her first daughter, Krista (Warren) Carter in 1971. She spent the next few years moving back to Jasper, raising her daughter, and working in her family’s restaurant, The County Kitchen. 

Nokie gave birth to her second and youngest daughter, Elizabeth Warren, in 1989 and then welcomed her first granddaughter, Heather Carter, in 1994. She went back to finish her criminal justice degree at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in the late 90s, and then began her position as a police dispatcher for the Marion County Sheriff’s Department. She also welcomed two more grandchildren, Melinda (Carter) Craig and Zachary Carter.

 A few years later, she moved up to the Marion County Circuit Court Clerk’s Office and stayed there until her retirement in 2018. During that time, she watched Elizabeth grow into an adult and graduate college, Krista raise her three children, and continued to be a pillar of her Jasper community.

 After retirement, Nokie decided to build herself a tiny home and move up to Monteagle mountain. Not being one who can do nothing for long, Nokie eventually started working in the deli department at the Food City in Winchester, Tennessee. She moved to the dining hall at Sewanee University so she could be closer to home. At Sewanee, Nokie continued to do what she had always done. She made friends and touched the lives of everyone she came across in her community.

I can think of no better compliment on a life well lived than the fact that she left the world a better place than when she found it. 

Nokie is survived by her daughters, Krista and Elizabeth; her grandchildren Heather, Melinda, and Zachary; her great grandchildren Emily, Hazel, Nathan, and Eliza; her brother, Dennis; and her many cousins, nephews, and nieces.

She is preceded in death by her sister Johnnie (Dawson) Ziegler, her brother-in-law Larry Ziegler, her parents Betty and Homer Dawson, and her aunt Mary Doris Edmondson.

The family will have a public visitation for friends and family on Thursday, May 21, 2026, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. (CDT) at the Jasper Chapel of Rogers Funeral Home,21 East Fifth Street, Jasper, Tennessee 37347.

Arrangements are entrusted to Rogers Funeral Home, Jasper Chapel, 21 East Fifth Street, Jasper, Tennessee 37347, (423) 942-2682.