SUMMERSVILLE — Norma Rose Brown, 66, died Thursday, Nov. 10, 2005.
Service will be 2 p.m. Sunday at Waters Funeral Chapel, Summersville. Friends may call 6 to 8 p.m. today at the funeral chapel.
Arrangements by Waters Funeral Chapel, Summersville.
Mary ‘Billie’ Vest Gill
Mary “Billie” Vest Gill, 82, of Beckley, died Friday, Nov. 11, 2005, at the home of her son in Glen Morgan following a long illness.
Arrangements by Calfee Funeral, Home, Beckley.
Hoyt Lee ‘H.L.’ Greear
PINEVILLE — Hoyt Lee “H.L.” Greear, 96, of Pineville, passed away Thursday, Nov. 10, 2005.
Born Feb. 22, 1909, he was the son of David and Ava Greear.
Hoyt graduated from Dungannon High School and worked 20 years at Island Creek Coal after working at Red Jacket Coal. He was a member of the Citizens Military Training Corps.
Mr. Greear was a member of Cook Memorial Baptist Church in Pineville.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Grace Gilliland Greear; and two brothers, Claude and Charles Greear.
Those left to cherish his loving memory include sons, David W. Greear and his wife, Ann, of South Charleston and Ronald L. Greear and his wife, Linda, of Pineville; grandsons, David W. Greear II and his wife, Jennifer, of Huntington and Daniel W. Greear and his wife, Amy, of South Charles-ton; great-grandchildren, Joshua Greear, Benjamin Greear, Caleb Greear, Susanna Greear and Sarah Greear; and a sister, V.G. Norton of Falls Church, Va.
Memorials may be made to Campus Light Ministries, Box 449, Morgantown, WV 26507-0449.
A private family memorial service will be held at a later date.
To honor Mr. Greear’s wishes, he will be cremated and buried beside his wife at Palm Memorial Gardens, Matheny.
Blue Ridge Funeral Home, Beckley, is serving the family.
Loretta Lester
MILL CREEK — Loretta Lester, 64, of Mill Creek, near Brenton, went to be with the Lord on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2005, at Hotchkiss.
Mrs. Lester was born Nov. 8, 1941, at Marianna, the daughter of the late Lenore Sargent. She was raised by her grandparents, the late John and Ida Sargent.
Mrs. Lester was a loving wife and mother, and was a devoted grandmother and friend. She was affiliated with the Pentecostal faith and was a homemaker and a beautician.
In addition to her mother and grandparents, she was preceded in death by four brothers, John Glenn Sargent, Basil Sargent, Johnny Sargent Jr. and Martin Lacy Sargent; and two sisters, Lorraine Sargent and Irene Thomas.
Survivors include her husband of 46 years, Donald Lester; two daughters, Darlene Hatfield and husband, Chad, of North Spring and Sheila Riffe and husband, Cameron, of Ikes Fork; two sons, Donald Lester Jr. and wife, Lisa, of Sun Hill and James Lester and wife, Audrey, of Powderly, Ky.; three sisters, Mrs. Gladys Miller of Williamson, formerly of Oceana, Mrs. Ida Mae Cook of Mill Creek and Mrs. Beulah Lester of Mill Creek; nine grandchildren, Eric Lester, Larisa Morgan, Kelli Huerta, Cammi Riffe, Travis Hatfield, Caleb Riffe, Candice Lester, Cassie Lester and Cody Lester; and a great-granddaughter, Ariel Huerta.
Service will be 1 p.m. Sunday at Brenton Church of God with the Rev. Tommy Knox, the Rev. Cameron Riffe, the Rev. Wendell England and the Rev. Garland Cooke officiating. Burial will follow in Paris Lester cemetery, Ikes Fork.
Friends may call 5 to 9 p.m. today at the church.
Arrangements by Fanning Funeral Home, Iaeger.
Wesley L. Meadows
Wesley L. Meadows, 90, of Eccles, passed away and went to be with the Lord on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2005, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
Born May 28, 1915, at Tommy Creek (Rhodell), he was the son of the late Albert and Nellie Meadows.
After graduating from Stoco High School in Coal City, Wesley married Chessie Mae Hayworth in 1939 and together they raised four beautiful girls. He supported his family as a fire boss in the coal mines where he worked for 45 years until his retirement. Wesley spent his retirement raising two large gardens a year (sharing with everyone), visiting his homestead in Rhodell and enjoying his grandchildren.
Wesley Meadows’ family will happily remember his bright smile and loving heart, avidly reading the Bible, picnicking, hunting and swearing off doctors and living by vitamins and exercise. His strong will to live and love was enduring to his bittersweet end.
In addition to his parents, Wesley Meadows was preceded in death by his daughter, Carolyn Sue Meadows; his granddaughter, Rebecca Toney; his best friend and brother, Lonza Meadows; and five beloved sisters, Chloe Clark, Eddie Hylton, Myrtle Meadows, Piney Darnell and Willa Warwick.
Left to cherish his memories are his wife, Chessie Mae Meadows; three daughters, Deanna Meadows of West Virginia, Brenda Barnes of Maryland and Naomi Hughes and husband, Charles, of West Virginia; and sister, Cleo Gordon of Alabama.
Wesley left behind eight grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren, and a great-great-grandchild. The grandchildren are Timmy Toney of Florida; Pam Stewart and husband, Stewart, and two children, Kyle and Ian, of West Virginia; Tracie Butler and husband, Jack, of Maryland; Marvelle Lewis and husband, Don, with four children, Maria, Jonathon, Chandler and Carlene with husband and daughter, Trinity, of North Carolina; Kimberly O’Dell and husband, Matthew, with daughter, Kristyn, of West Virginia; Jeffrey Barnes of West Virginia; Wesley Toney with wife, JoEllen, and three children, Maggie, Eric and Aleck, of Virginia; and Cynthia Hughes of West Virginia.
Friends and family may call 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. today at Melton Mortuary, Beckley. Service will begin immediately after at 1 p.m. at Melton Mortuary, and burial will follow in Sunset Memorial Park, Beckley.
Arrangements by Melton Mortuary, Beckley.
Nancy Brown Morgan
ALDERSON — Nancy Brown Morgan, 66, passed away Thursday, Nov. 10, 2005, at her home after a long illness.
Born Feb. 1, 1939, at Rock Camp, she was the daughter of the late Kenneth John, who passed away Nov. 9, 1993, and Hazel Wallace Brown, who passed away Nov. 2, 1992.
Mrs. Morgan had been a resident of Alderson for 42 years and was formerly of Union, member of the Alderson Presbyterian Church, enjoyed gardening, church work, family and friends, a homemaker and a secretary for the Greenbrier County Board of Education in Lewisburg.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, R. Kent Morgan, on April 5, 2004; and a nephew, Kenny Brown, in 1994.
Survivors include two daughters, Rebecca Keadle and husband, Steve, of Alderson and Vicki Keeney of Tallahassee, Fla.; a brother, John U. Brown II and wife, Pat, of Lewisburg; an aunt, Mabel Sydnor of Charlottesville, Va.; and three grandsons, Whitney Morgan Keadle, Joseph Kent Keeney and Shane Taylor Keadle.
Service will be 2 p.m. Sunday at Alderson Presbyterian Church with the Rev. BillyReed Wickline officiating. Entombment will follow in Greenbrier Memorial Gardens Mausoleum, Lewisburg.
Friends may call 7 to 9 p.m. today at Longanacre Funeral Home, Fairlea, and one hour before service Sunday at the church.
Pallbearers will be grandsons Whitney M. Keadle, Joseph K. Keeney and Shane T. Keadle, and nephews Rusty Brown, David Lindsey and Greg Lindsey.
Memorials may be made to Alderson Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 126, Alderson, WV 24910.
Arrangements by Longan-acre Funeral Home, Fairlea.
Dr. Kenneth K. Rand
Dr. Kenneth K. Rand, 101, of Beckley, died Tuesday evening, Nov. 8, 2005, at his residence of natural causes.
Born Dec. 18, 1903, at Cottageville, he was the son of the late Austin Clark and Lula Davis Rand.
Dr. Rand was a graduate of Ravenswood High School, Ohio College of Dental Surgery and a 1927 graduate of the University of Louisville Dental College. While in dental college he was inducted into the Psi Omega Dental Fraternity. He practiced dentistry in Coalwood and Coretta in McDowell County, moved his dental practice to Beckley in 1932, retiring in 1968 with the exception of two years served during the Korean War. He entered the U.S. Navy with the rank of lieutenant commander and before his discharge he was promoted to the rank of captain.
Dr. Rand was a member and ordained deacon of the First Baptist Church of Beckley, member of the Baraca Sunday School Class, active member of the Gideon Bible Program and was one of the founders of the Flat Top Lake Association.
He was a member of Black Knight Country Club, Elks and Moose Lodge, Lions Club and New River Dental Society, where he served as president for one term, and was a lifelong member of the American Dental Association.
Dr. Rand married Nell Combs and they had two daughters, Kyra and Carolyn, before she preceded him in death in 1947. He later married Pauline Carter, in December 1953. In addition to his first wife, he was preceded in death by a brother, Ernest D. Rand of Sistersville.
Surviving are his wife, Pauline Carter Rand; his daughters, Kyra Rand Pease and her husband, Donn, of Arizona and Carolyn Rand Boggs of California; a stepdaughter, Peggy Holliday of Beckley; stepson, Jerry Carter of Beckley; and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Service will be 2 p.m. today at Calfee Funeral Home Chapel, Beckley, with the Rev. Gary Johnson officiating, with a eulogy given by Earl Whitener. Entombment will follow in Sunset Memorial Park Mausoleum A, Beckley.
Friends may call noon until time of the service today at the funeral home.
Pallbearers will be Donn Pease, Alan, Alan Jay and Michael Holliday, James Floyd and Robert Burns.
Memorial contributions may be made to Gideon’s, c/o A.K. Walker, 517 Orchard Ave., Beckley, WV 25801.
Arrangements by Calfee Funeral Home, Beckley.
Vala Viva Rose
Vala Viva Rose, 82, of Old Pemberton Road, Beckley, died Thursday, Nov. 10, 2005, in a Sissonville care facility following a long illness.
Born Feb. 11, 1923, in Mercer County, she was the daughter of the late Shelby and Martha Elizabeth Akers Rose.
Miss Rose spent her childhood at Old Pemberton Road, attending school in Mabscott and graduating from Woodrow Wilson High School. She was a self-employed private duty nurse aide and was of the Christian faith.
She was preceded in death by her sisters, Ruby Rose, Anne Gertrude Snuffer and Lucille McKinney; and brothers, Ralph, Ronald, and Percy Rose.
She was the last surviving member of her immediate family.
Survivors include several nieces and nephews; and special friends, Regina Paisley and Charles R. Link.
Service will be 2 p.m. Sunday at Melton Mortuary Chapel, Beckley, with Pastor Mark Schrade officiating. Burial will follow in Sunset Memorial Park, Beckley.
Friends may call 6 to 9 p.m. today at the funeral home.
Arrangements by Melton Mortuary, Beckley.
Cyrus A. Williams
Cyrus A. Williams, 85, of 202 Fairview Ave., Beckley, formerly of Kopperston, died Thursday, Nov. 10, 2005, at Hilltop Center following a short illness.
Born April 9, 1920, at Long Branch, he was the son of the late Frank Williams and Virgie Walton Williams.
Mr. Williams was a retired electrician for Eastern Associated Coal Corp. with 47 years of service. He lived in Beckley since 1986.
He was a World War II U.S. Army and Air Force veteran.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Maxine Williams, and brother, Frank Williams Jr.
Survivors include a son, Richard Williams and wife, Sallye, of Apopka, Fla.; daughter, Peggy Brown and husband, Craig, of Beckley, with whom he made his home; grandchildren, Brian Williams and wife, Donna, of Beckley, Kimberly Williams of Apopka and Lindsay Wilson and husband, Ian, of Altamonte Springs, Fla.; two great-grandchildren, Tanner Williams of Apopka and Morgan Williams of Beckley; a sister, Pattie Brooks of Beckley; four nieces; a nephew; and four “granddogs.”
Graveside rites and burial will be 1 p.m. Sunday at Blue Ridge Memorial Gardens, Beckley, with the Rev. Jerry Cook officiating.
Friends may call 6 to 9 p.m. today at Rose and Quesenberry Funeral Home, Beckley.
Pallbearers will be Matthew Mullins, Brian Williams, Craig Brown, Dan Thacker, Richard Williams and Gayle Pennington.
Arrangements by Rose and Quesenberry Funeral Home, Beckley.
Dorothy Helen McClure Barton
BEDFORD, Va. — Dorothy Helen McClure Barton, 81, of Moneta, Va., and Walnut Cove, N.C., formerly of Mullens, died Friday, Nov. 11, 2005, at her residence.
She was born in Louisiana on Feb. 11, 1924, a daughter of the late Marion Leslie McClure and Alice L. McClure.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Samuel McKinley Barton.
While a previous resident of Beckley, Dorothy was an agent with Feller Insurance Agency.
She is survived by a daughter, Barbara A. Heath of Walnut Cove; a son, Samuel M. Barton and his wife, Sherrie, of New Bern, N.C.; five grandchildren, Samuel J. Barton of Bermuda Dunes, Calif., Robert A. Barton of Goodview, Va., Richard W. Heath II of Dalzell, S.C., and Alicia D. Bowman and Heather L. Heath, both of Walnut Cove; eight great-grandchildren; and several brothers and sisters.
Service will be 11 a.m. Tuesday at Tharp Funeral Chapel, 320 N. Bridge St., Bedford, with the Rev. Dr. Carl H. Douglass Jr. officiating. Burial will follow in Greenwood cemetery.
The family will receive friends 10 a.m. until time of the service Tuesday at the funeral chapel.
