Bessie Bernice Brooks Hodge was born to the late Carrie Jane Harris and the late Hugh Gibbons Brooks in Person County, North Carolina on September 10, 1934. She was the youngest of twelve children and was affectionately called Bernice.

Bernice was educated in Orange County, North Carolina and graduated from Central High School in 1951. She then enrolled at St. Agnes Hospital School of Nursing in Raleigh. St. Agnes offered the first professional training for Black nurses in the State of North Carolina. She completed the required studies, earned her bachelor's degree in nursing and was licensed as a Registered Nurse. She was also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated.

While employed at St. Agnes Hospital, Bernice met and married her soulmate, Dr. Ernest B. Hodge. They were the proud parents of one son, Danny.

The couple shared 58 wonderful years of marriage until his death in 2015.

Dr. and Mrs. Hodge joined Mount Zion Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They were faithful in their church attendance, always sat in the rear of the sanctuary and quietly worshipped each Sunday for more than forty years.

Bernice Brooks Hodge departed this life and received her heavenly wings at her home in Winston-Salem on Saturday, July 22, 2023, with her beloved son, Danny, at her side. In addition to her parents and her husband, she was preceded in death by her siblings.

The unspeakable joy that awaits her in heaven is the hope and promise of those who look forward to a reunion with her in eternity. Those family members who survive and who will forever cherish loving memories of her include her son, Danny Hodge, of the home, several nieces, nephews, extended family members and friends.

There will be no public viewing. A memorial service will be held at 12 PM, Friday, July 28, 2023 at Mount Zion Baptist Church, 950 File Street, Winston-Salem, NC 27101. The family will receive friends thirty-minutes prior to service. Clark S. Brown & Sons entrusted to services.