Well done good and faithful servant.
Jessie Hibbitts Beasley passed peacefully to be with the Lord on May 26, 2024, at the age of 97. Mrs. Beasley was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and friend to all who came in contact with her.
She will be remembered for her gentle manner, her love of family, her wisdom, and her integrity. Mrs. Beasley spent many decades fulfilling her strong desire to educate and nurture the elementary school children of Paducah, KY while working as a teacher, principal, and counselor in the public school system.
The youngest sibling of 10 children, Mrs. Beasley was born December 1, 1926, in Jenkins, Kentucky to the late William Ayers and Mattie Meade Hibbitts. Her father and brothers worked in the nearby coal mines of eastern Kentucky. As a young girl, every morning before school she would enjoy taking her favorite horse Charlie for a vigorous ride while her long red braids flowed behind her.
After graduating from Berea College, Mrs. Beasley took a job as a social worker for the state of Kentucky in Frankfort. She was later transferred to Paducah, KY where she helped place babies for adoption. It was in the foyer of the Columbia Theater in Paducah where she met her future husband and the love of her life Walter “Dub” Beasley. She and Mr. Beasley were stalwarts of the Paducah community, where her husband ran the historic Beasley Monument Company. Mr. and Mrs. Beasley were long-time members of the Broadway Church of Christ.
Mrs. Beasley became a second-grade teacher at Clark Elementary School. This started a five-decade long career in the Paducah City School System. She served in various roles in the education system including as a teacher, a school counselor, and a testing coordinator for identification of learning disabilities. She was Director of Project VIII, a joint Paducah-Louisville Dropout Prevention Program. Eventually, Mrs. Beasley became the principal of McNabb Elementary School. She was a Board-Certified Clinical Counselor. After retirement from the school system, Mrs. Beasley continued to work with children as a counselor at Child Watch. Through her volunteer efforts, she became the recipient of the JC Penney Golden Rule Award.
In her free time, Mrs. Beasley enjoyed being with her family, boating on Kentucky Lake, and playing tennis and bridge with her friends. She maintained a lifetime love for the mountains of eastern Kentucky, and she never failed to make annual trips to her childhood home to visit family and attend Berea college reunions.
In addition to her parents Mrs. Beasley is preceded in death by her five brothers and her four sisters, as well as her husband of fifty-five years, Walter L. Beasley.
Jessie is survived by her two daughters, Jennifer Beasley Whitfield (Tom) and Rebecca Meade Beasley Johnson; her two grandchildren, Katherine Whitfield Long (Scott) and Thomas Tyree Whitfield (Helen); and her three great grandchildren, Kathleen and Merritt Long and Thomas Whitfield. Mrs. Beasley is also survived by many loving nieces and nephews.
There will be a graveside funeral on Thursday, May 30, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. at Maplelawn Park Cemetery, Paducah, KY. The family would like to thank the incredible caregivers at Woodcrest and Alive Hospice in Nashville, TN.
Woodbine Funeral Home, Hickory Chapel, 5852 Nolensville Road, Nashville, TN 37211.
