Betty Dean Easterling
June 26, 1937 – October 15, 2007
Betty Dean was the daughter of the late John and Thelma Rhodes. She graduated from Seventy-First High School in 1955. She played basketball and in 1955 was voted the best girl athlete. She and dad (Don) met in high school and quickly became high school sweethearts. Once dad saw her in class he talked another student into changing desks so he could sit next to her in class. Everyone in class, including the teacher for two weeks, thought his name was Thomas Suggs. She was angry at him when she found his name was Donald Easterling He said he thought she was the prettiest girl in the whole school. They took off to Dillon and married on February 11, 1953.
Mother loved and adored her family. Family was very important to her. She loved her three children, Donna, Bill, and Dean, daughter-in-law, Kathy, grandchildren, Tony II, Justin, Andrew, Blaire, great-grandchildren, Tyler, Evan, and Kyle, and best of all her husband, her high school sweetheart, her best friend and soul mate of 54 1/2 years, Don, and her pet Beagle, Skivey.
She loved her sister, Rose and Johnnie Mae and brother, Bill as well. She tried to talk to them every day. She was so family oriented.
She loved to cook and for family and friends to enjoy her cooking. She enjoyed nothing more than for her two nieces, Vivian and Brenda, to argue over who was going to get her chicken salad and potato salad. She loved to have family socials. One of her favorites is on December 24th when all of her family on the Rhodes side gets together every year. We cook so much food and everyone enjoys it so much. We have barbeque and the fixings. It has been a tradition for years. Everyone gets a gift bag. She loved it and went out of her way to make sure if a guest came that they had a gift bag. Mom was so proud of her family and she loved them all.
I had a friend tell me that when he saw my parents together he could see and feel the love they had for each other; that they complimented each other.
Mother went to collect rent on August 25, 2007 and was attacked viciously by a pit bull. She was hospitalized until September 25, 2007, undergoing seven surgeries with multiple skin grafts. She was rushed from home to the hospital on October 15, 2007 where she died from complications from the dog mauling. Prior to this she was in perfect health and would never hurt anyone. She was always a kind and caring person. I’m glad that she was the giving person she was. I hope that her gift of sight is benefiting others. It helps our family to know that a part of her still lives on.
She was a wonderful person and we miss her so much. She was my best friend and taught me so many things. I hope I can be half the person she was.
In loving memory,
Your daughter, Donna
Ronald Eaton
My husband, Ronald Eaton, was a tire salesman by trade. This gave him an opportunity to talk to many people during the course of his day. He loved to talk. If he was running late it was usually due to the fact that he was talking to a customer or someone he ran into on his way home from work.
Ron also worked over the years in the home improvement trade. He was a neat, meticulous worker and the end result was always beautiful workmanship. One of his favorite ways to spend his days off was doing home improvements in his own home.
Ron had a passion for NASCAR and could be found in front of the television whenever they were racing.
The kitchen was another place he could be found. He loved to cook as much as he liked to eat. He could often be found watching the food channel while relaxing in the evening.
Yard work was also a favorite hobby of his. Cold or heat did not stop him from being outdoors. He was in his element raking, blowing leaves, mowing… He found it relaxing.
Ron had many fond memories of his home state of Maryland. He loved to talk about the times he spent crabbing with his son. One of his favorite places was Solomon’s Island. The later years held little time for these things as he was always busy at work.
Ron is surely missed by his family, his co-workers, his neighbors, and his church.
We all love you and miss you!
Mildred Ward Edge
Born on January 17, 1937 – Went home to Heaven on January 7, 2007
We could list all of mother’s accomplishments and tell stories of special moments in her life, but mama didn’t want any credit for those things. She always gave God the credit and praised Him for all the good and the bad in her life. She loved her Savior with every fiber of her being and she wanted everyone to know Him the way she did. She loved to go to her church, to read her bible, to sing, to travel, to cook (for any and everyone), she loved to help people (family, friend or stranger), she loved children of all ages, she loved to shop (for bargains), she enjoyed being able to work (she seldom was idle), but her most favorite thing of all was to worship and praise her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Mama was a kind, generous and loving person. That is what we remember most when we think of her and we give God the glory and thank Him for blessing us with her as our mother. We miss her so much. Sometimes it hurts so badly that we don’t know how we will be able to go on. Thankfully, because Christ is also our Savior, we have His promise that we will see her again in heaven. That gives us comfort and helps ease our pain. It was mother’s fervent prayer that no one should perish and that the way she lived her life would be a testament to lead others to Christ.
It was no secret to many that mother was an organ donor, and she urged others to do so as well. We were not prepared when on January 7, 2007 mother had a brain bleed or a ruptured cerebral aneurysm. She gradually slipped into a coma and was put on life support. We were not ready, right away, to stop life support, but we knew what was to come since her doctor gave us little hope for her survival. When her condition grew terminal, her siblings and we made the decision to fulfill her wish. Now her unselfish act of love has given new hope to five people and the prospect of more through research. She would be so very happy to know that she continued to help others because that was the kind of person she was. She enjoyed making others happy. So this is for you, mama. You will always be loved and we look forward to seeing you and holding you in our arms again. You are our most precious and dearest friend…you are our mother.
Love,
Your daughters, Cynthia Mackie, Debra Hardee, your son-in-law Randiss Hardee and especially from your loving grandson, Michael Mackie
Ruben Edwards
July 25, 1937 – September 19, 2007
Ruben Edwards was a well-rounded, hard-working man. Ruben never met a stranger or came across a project too tough for him to figure out. Ruben took pride in his work and family. He loved to plan family trips and reunions for any occasion. When he would take time to relax he enjoyed going to church, fishing, playing with his great grandchildren, eating a well-prepared, home-cooked meal and napping.
Ruben would always close his prayers with “Dear Lord, we ask you to guide us, direct us and give us strength.” He always encouraged everyone to find them a good church home and to get involved in it. Ruben was a born again Christian who was ready to meet his father whenever he chose to call him home to Heaven.
Today all of Rubens’ friends and family have strength knowing that on September 19, 2007 Ruben Edwards received his one-way first class ticket to Heaven! Even though we all miss him here on earth we know his spirit lives on.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that who ever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.
William Odell "Dell" Edwards, Jr.
October 10, 1956 – May 29, 2007
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3:1
Dell Edwards passed away on May 29, 2007 at the age of 50, leaving this earth much too soon. He left behind a very caring and supportive family, including his two children, Will, 13 and Ally, 8, who he loved with all his heart.
Dell was fortunate to have grown up on a family farm and lived a life with all of the adventures that farm life can bring. As an adult he grew many acres of cucumbers, cotton and tobacco, and enjoyed passing on his love of agriculture and pride for the farm to his children. Will and Ally will always remember and cherish those special times their dad spent with them, especially when teaching them how to drive John Deere tractors and old farm trucks and feeding and caring for animals.
His family is content in knowing he is in a better place now, and take much comfort in knowing that Dell was able to help someone through his death. He would have been proud to know he was doing something for someone else.
Our family’s hope is that through his eyes someone will be able to enjoy seeing the sunshine, the rain, this beautiful land and all the colors of each season that God has blessed us with.
Kirk Eidson
Kirk was sixteen years old when I was born - my very big brother. Kirk scoffed before I was born that he would barely know me, that he would go to college and then only see me on holidays. Luckily, and unluckily, this was not the case. While Kirk was attending college, he began to experience the symptoms of what eventually was diagnosed as schizoaffective disorder. In Kirk's case this manifested as hearing voices and having episodes of mania and depression.
While Kirk did spend some time in institutions, this was the exception. It was very important to him and, more significantly, our mother, that he not be institutionalized. So my childhood memories are of Kirk living at home with us. He played with me every afternoon after school. He was my primary companion, as we lived in a neighborhood with few other children. We would go to the park every day; we would walk to the grocery store. He would always buy me a treat. We played kickball, which is more fun than you would think it would be with only two people. We played Boy and Lion, a strategy game where one of us was a boy and one of us a lion, and we talked through evading and hunting each other. He always won. He turned me into a staunch Libertarian by the age of nine. He told me his plans for building his airship, and later, the Kirk1 computer and Gen5 manufacturing company. Our relationship was gratifying for both of us; I had a fascinating and loving companion, and he had the love - and the lack of understanding of the meaning of "normal" - of a child.
My father died when I was sixteen. I was fortunate to have a brother who was almost like another parent. He had helped raise me and always looked out for me. Kirk moved to an apartment a few minutes from the house, but I still saw him every day.
And then I was the one who went away, who went to college and rarely came home except on holidays. I lived in New York City. I got married. We talked on the phone sometimes. I saw him more after moving to Virginia in 2001, which was nice. He bonded with my husband, Ben, calling him a friend and, later, a brother. This was a pleasure to me - most people were scared of Kirk and he had no friends. From the moment Kirk and Ben met they got on well, and this is one of the reasons I married him.
It turned out to be a good thing we had moved closer to home, because Kirk began to get sick not long after. He turned out to have congestive heart failure and needed more and more help to function. He was desperate to avoid a nursing home. Our mother, and to a lesser extent Ben and myself, made this possible. This period of time is bittersweet for me. I was spending more time with Kirk than I had since I was a child, but he was visibly failing. He died this summer at the age of 46 in his apartment. He had been having a good day.
I found out today that two people have benefited from the donation of his eyes, and I know this would have pleased him. Kirk had very little that was his own, but was the most generous person I have ever known.
Virginia Kirkpatrick Penick
Simply put, Kirk is the smartest person that I have ever met - by a wide margin. I often had to struggle to keep up, but Kirk and I had hundreds of intriguing conversations about physics, computers, food, and movies. His encyclopedic knowledge drove our talks to places that I never thought we'd go. They are probably some of the most rewarding and surprising interactions that I will experience.
Kirk taught me to take pleasure in even the simplest of things - a good cup of coffee, the best kind of bottled water, freshly squeezed orange juice. Kirk didn't settle for anything but the best that he could afford. And he was never shy about offering everything that he had to guests - the best seat, his warmest jacket, the food on the plate in front of him. If most people I meet in the future are half as generous, I would be lucky.
I remember early on in my relationship with Kirk when he referred to me as his brother-in-law. That made me uncomfortable and I asked him to think of me as his brother. From that day forward, he treated me as such and I was honored to return the favor. He was a great friend, a loyal champion, and an honest critic. That's a brother.
Ben Armbruster
Carroll Junior Emerson
Carroll Junior Emerson was introduced to the world on December 21, 1941 where he lived 65 years just the way he wanted. My father was a quiet man who didn’t bother anyone. He kept to himself and enjoyed fishing, westerns and his morning coffee. He was married for 35 years to my mother and had four children in his lifetime. He taught us to have respect for others and ourselves. The world doesn’t meet you halfway so you have to go after your dreams. Fight for what you believe in and never back down. My daddy made me strong and left me and my family with many memories that will forever make us laugh in remembrance but cry for our loss. He lived independently and strong-willed until the very end. He never wanted others to take care of him and he didn’t want to live on medications and medical treatments. He got his wish. He met the Lord on a dark day but found the light of love that he would need to leave this world. Carroll Emerson was introduced to the kingdom of Heaven on July 29, 2007 and while he is now living in the promised land, he will forever be missed here. May those who received his eyes always know just how special they are. God bless.
Tammy Evans
We have lots of memories of Tammy, but the one that stands out most is that she was a giver. When Tammy passed away she had gifts for her Sunday School class at Bear Swamp Baptist Church and a birthday card and presents for her family for the whole year. She never forgot a birthday and was through Christmas shopping by September every year. She was a special person.
With love,
Mary K. Evans
