Betty Terry Beard's Obituary
Betty Terry Beard, 83, passed away July 23, 2016. She was born February 28, 1933 in Somerville, Tennessee. She is survived by her husband of 58 years, L. D. Beard; children, Murray Lee Beard (Wendy), John David Beard (Amy) and Sara Beard Tilton (Thomas); grandchildren, Justin Tyler Beard (Margaret), Christopher Shelton Beard, William Duncan Beard, Leann Catherine Beard, Anna Marie Beard, and Laura Elizabeth Beard; and brothers, Gordon Merrill Terry (Helen) and Ronald Shelton Terry. She was born to Fayette County farmers in the middle of the Great Depression, and grew up to believe in the power of an educated woman to accomplish anything she set her mind to. She was equally comfortable building businesses with her husband, traveling the world, or canning enough produce from a small garden to feed an army. Her grandchildren may not know it, but one of her proudest achievements was helping lead her high school basketball team to the state championships. She continued to coach professional and college basketball teams from in front of a television, with great passion, for the next 66 years. She worked for the Department of Agriculture in Fayette County, then moved to Memphis to go to nursing school. In 1958 she married L. D. Beard, just back from the service with the Air Force in the Korean War. She was an advertising director with WDIA in Memphis. She built a family, raised her children, worked through a Master’s Degree in Library Science simultaneously, and was employed by or volunteered in every school library she ran across. She believed strongly in the value of reading, and encouraged every child and parent she ran across to read, read, and read some more. An avid gardener, we think she knew the name of every ornamental or vegetable ever raised in the south. One of her greatest joys was building beautiful gardens and landscapes. She leaves behind her a legacy of love for her husband, love of education, love of books, and love for her children and grandchildren. Visitation will be 5-7 p.m., Tuesday, July 26 and funeral services will be 10 a.m., Wednesday, July 27 at Memorial Park Funeral Home and Cemetery. The family requests memorial donations be sent to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the Memphis Zoo. Her services have been entrusted to Memorial Park Funeral Home and Cemetery, 5668 Poplar Ave. Memphis TN 38119. (901) 767-8930. “Celebrating Life….Behind the Stone Wall.”
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