My aunt Beth was one of the, if not the most, kind hearted person I know. She was a free-spirit, a woman with many creative thoughts who was willing to share with anyone who listened. She was more than an aunt, she was a friend. I could talk to her forthrightly and know that in return I would get sincere advice but never any judgement. She was just as smart as she was kind. Beth loved everyone. She would put her needs behind those of anyone else, referring to her as giving would simply be an understatement. When we went anywhere together, I would not leave empty handed. My aunt was always buying me things, she loved to shop, we did that a lot. She was always a blessing to be around. Many times when we were out together she would see students she had previously had in her classes and always knew them by name and took the time to catch up with them to ask them about their families and how they were doing. It made her happy to see other people happy. As much as I love visiting my grandparents there is a piece of my heart that is missing at their house and that is her. She was a light for us all, even sick she would glow. She had friendships that lasted a lifetime and was loved by so many. I am forever grateful for the memories I have to remember you by. Thank you for fighting for as long as you did, I love you.

Beth had such a beautiful and caring spirit. She will be missed.
(Rita Law, Charlotte)

Beth,
 May god bless you and hold you close.  We miss your smile, your energy and your compassion dearly and love you forever.

In my mind's eye, I see a laughing bunch of kids sledding down a snowy Coe Avenue around Christmas. My one-month-older cousin, Beth, is right there with the rest of the cousins - beaming her brilliant smile. Flash forward years later and Beth's warmth and smile had become her trademarks. And we just couldn't help but smile back. In a simple way, this was how Beth happily brightened our days. Compassion and empathy were at her core. A radiant smile upon her face. This is how I will always remember Beth.

Beth was one of the most unique people I've ever known. She saw things that other people did not. She saw to the core of people -- finding and connecting to the beauty there, even if they kept it hidden. She saw the latent hilarity in situations and blurted out the funniest things that nobody saw coming. 

It was always an adventure with Beth. Hanging out in Pop and Memaw's house after they went to bed doesn't sound terribly exciting -- unless you were there. I miss those conversations, but am so glad to have had them. She was perfect absurdity. 

I love Beth. We all do. For me, and a few others (you know who you are), the perfect way to remember her and honor that memory is obvious; keep cruisin' for trouble.

Beth,
    I will always miss you and cherish in my heart my memories of you. Even through your strong battle with cancer you cared for me when I was on hands and knees in the parking lot of IKEA in pain from a kidney stone. You took time out of your day to help me with a paper for school, and you were simply just happy to help. You were so passionate about everything and everyone you love. You were like an aunt to me and I know that you will be there watching down on us pain free with that big wonderful smile of yours. I love you!

Beth, 
I am so lucky to have you as my aunt but to me you were and are so much more than that. You were my second mom, the sister I never had, and one of my very best friends. Thank you for sharing your love with me and teaching me what it truly means to fight, like I told you I will use your strength to fight and go on. I will always look back and remember so many great adventures and memories with you. I love and miss you more than words can express! Thank you for helping to make me the woman I am today. 
With all my love, 
Caitlin

The loss of someone so close is difficult to bear. The thoughts of many are with you and share your grief. Though we miss her terribly, the countless ways Beth touched the lives of others will last indefinitely. Reading these tributes from friends and family is a testament to the positive influence she had on so many. May you find solace in knowing that others cherish fond memories of times with Beth and will continue to rely on the sage advice she shared and marvel at the courage she modeled for us. We learned from her while she was with us and will continue to do so now that she's asleep. Love and prayers to all.
Angie

Life, my life anyway, does not give many clues in speaking of the death of a sister – certainly not in present day America where we little know our friends or neighbors, where families are extended in time and space, where, it seems, at times, the electronic life supersedes the physical. So there is no roadmap. No plan – just a few thoughts and memories.
It is easier, in many ways, to say what Beth was not. I don't think she would have minded. She was not successful by standard criteria – financial, social, and political. I am sure she thought about the external trappings of life, but for the most part she would simply sigh and smile whenever the subject came up. She knew early that that sort of striving life was not hers. She made up her own mind about what was valuable and held it close, remarkably unaffected by those who might say “she should do this” or “she should do that”. Not to say she did not live in this world, she certainly did, but at the same time she had an anchor, at her core, of self-assurance in a world we only hope to visit.
For all of us, the old memories are what mean the most – the places, the street names – so for us April Drive, Linda Lane, Mills Ave, a few others. Beth had a sharp memory and eye for detail and I am sure if she were here could tell you, in royal fashion, about all those places. The stories might go on for a few hours – unerringly accurate, precisely characterized – perhaps with an unhappy ending, but never with a hard edge, never unforgiving. Beth was sort of like that – the trivial and mean spirited she would ignore, the truth and what she loved she would hold in her mind, examine and finally cherish. I saw it more than once in her eyes. They would shine brightly. “Yes, yes that's it” she would say and smile, very simply.
She loved English literature, Boston Terriers, and flowers. She was a teacher, a sister and a friend. She was unique in the full sense of that word. She was courageous and candid. She was great in wellsprings of life.
We all miss you Beth. We all love you. I know that your voice is not still and one day, I pray, I will listen again. 
Love, Michael

Dear Susan and Family,
I would like you all to know how blessed I feel to have known Beth.  She has the kindest soul.  I would like to share with you a story that I will always remember vividly and has forever impacted me.
When I was young, about seven or eight years old, I remember talking to her on the phone one night.  I repeated to her something that I had heard a morning radio host talking about.  It was a mean spirited sense of humor that I now know to be cruel and not funny.  They were joking about how when people say that they are beautiful on the inside it really means that they are ugly.  When I told this to Beth I can still so clearly remember her words.  She said “Oh Janie, but beauty is on the inside.”  I so clearly remember her voice and gentle and kind tone when she spoke those words.  Her voice still echoes in my mind.  Not only was Beth so extremely kind and loving but her words especially had an impact because of her soft tone.
Beth's soft tone and resolution in knowing God's kindness made such an incredible impact on me.  She had a way of saying things with such sincerity that it made you pause to think.  She always spoke wonderfully kind words and the manner in which she spoke them was always so touching.
Seeing Beth after that experience, I was always reminded of the true kindness and love in the world.  Beth's presence always reminded me of what was important in the world and the beauty of kindness.  Seeing her was always so uplifting.
Love,
Jane

Janet and Frank, you and your family are inspirational.  The way you surrounded Beth with constant and unwavering love and support through everything is something I pray for with my own family.  It was wonderful to have the time I did with Beth in August, remembering old times and sharing new experiences.  I  will treasure these memories.
With love,
Lynn

In my mind, I will always see Beth as a beautiful young woman with an attractive and  pleasant smile. I am grateful to have to have known Beth and to have been a small part of the Livingstons' lives over the years.

Beth,  My dear sweet true friend who I will forever love. The thought of you brings back so many great memories in my life.  Our times at work (Source Technologies Inc.), bible study, the softball team, shopping, many lunches together in Southpark Mall , babysitting my boys, Christmas parties, and sharing many family stories.  You got me through graduate school and helped me with my wedding.  I was so proud of you when you finished UNCC and knew that great things were in store for you. You proved to me that a black woman and a white woman could truly have a colorless relationship. Please know my family was your family and I am grateful to have been a part of your life. 2014 will forever stay with me because I lost you and my mother this year.  God be with your family and ease the great loss your leaving has caused.   Your sister in Christ,

Janet and Frank--I wish I had known Beth. What a treasure she was to all who were honored to have known her. Continuous prayers for you and your family will be given. Catherine Fleming

My dearest Beth, I'm forever blessed to have met you and happy to have such great memories of us spending evenings together after a good meal, laughing so hard sometimes til we cried :) You will be missed but never forgotten love!!!

RIP Beth, It was a honor to have met you and so very glad you came to NY for a visit.

Beth (LADY) it was a joy to know you.  We always had a good laugh over some sweet tea and I am so glad I got to be the one to show you Niagara Falls in the rain.  Your visit this past summer was a blessing and I am happy I got to spend some quality time with you.  I will think of you often.  Love ya Lady!!

Beth,
So many things will always remind me of you ....

QVC
Hiking  
Gardening 
Boston terriers  
Something sweet
Crossword puzzels
Going to the movies
Popcorn and jr mints  
Pasta and red sauce
Good mystery novels 
Our January birthdays 
Beautiful Christmas trees

I miss you. I will carry you in my heart and
I will always be grateful for your friendship. 

Love and peace to you Beth
Love and peace to all who love you.

Janet, Frank, Susan, Michael, Matthew, and the entire family,
We are so sorry for your loss.  I looked at the pictures and what a beautiful story they tell about Beth and your family.  You have wonderful memories to sustain you as well as the knowledge of Beth's faith and the strength she showed during her struggle with an awful disease.  Still, we know you will miss her greatly and a piece of you will always be missing.  We will keep you all in our prayers in the days ahead.  With our love, Janice and Ron Abluton

Life will be different without her. 
Life will be different with one less aunt. 
However, Beth was more than an aunt, she was a role model for myself and everyone around her. Beth taught me lessons in selflessness that I will use for the rest of my life and for that I am eternally grateful.

Beth, I am thankful for ever even getting the chance to call you my aunt. I cannot begin to tell you how much I love you. I am grateful for all you have taught me, although you nor I may not have realized it at the time. You taught me that if you love someone or something enough they will always look extraordinary through your eyes and that is so much more than I can ever repay you for. I like to think I may have taught you something in return and the thought of that makes me incredibly happy. I was truly blessed that you were in my life and I was in yours. I love you beyond measure.

Katie

Beth,
Thank you for the wonderful lessons you taught me over the past year. You have been an amazing example of what it means to have faith like a mountain and I am very lucky to have experienced your love and kindness.  Thank you for all that you did and continue to do for my faith, and my day to day life.

To the Shinn Family,
Thank you for your love, kindness, and continued support through everything. You, like Beth, are full of love and have hearts that are bigger than your chests can hold.  I love you all and it was an honor to have helped in the process of loving and caring for Beth.  I am always here for you and know you can call on me for anything.  I love you all...

Zach

With deepest sympathy, We are so sorry for your loss.  May you find comfort in cherished memories.  Your friends and WID family.

Kim, Angie, Cam and Eddie, I am sorry for your loss and hope you find some comfort in sharing wonderful memories and stories of Beth and family.

As the days and weeks pass, and as you return to life's routine, may you continue to feel comforted by the love and support of family and friends.

Dear Beth,

I know that it's customary for friends and loved ones to write to family and share stories and favorite memories of the person they've lost. I'm not always one for convention though, and since you're not really gone, my story is for you. It's about the people that love you, and the miracles I witnessed in your final days with us.

I watched friends and family struggling with the fact that you're lighting the way ahead of us on the path of life when we all thought we were walking hand in hand. Michael and Matthew offered bedside vigils; one a silent soliloquy, one filled with music and song. Friends, relatives, nieces and nephews crowded your room and filled the house with stories and laughter of our time together. We promised you we'd be ok. Tears flowed when the gravity of not being able to see you for a while got the better of us. I couldn't help but think that each tear, each story, each laugh was weaving a tapestry, a magic carpet, that would carry you away from us warm and secure in our love for you. 

You were cared for by amazing women, three generations of nurses who know you better than anyone. Your mom carried herself with grace and dignity, she held your hand and stroked your cheek; she hovered as moms do, arranging your covers and making sure you were comfortable. She shared your bed on your last night with us, cradling you as she did when you were a baby. Susan and you are a part of each other; two sisters, one heart. Her loving hands tended to your needs; she never left your side. She reminisced about your life together. I realized that our family has our very own superhero, for disguised as the diminutive Caitlin Shinn is an Amazon warrior. Fiercely protective of the ones she loves and fearless in action, your niece provided you medicine, helped with your care, and let you know that it was ok to leave us. 

The day before you left, our hearts burst with joy when you opened your eyes. Susan told you Pop was in the room and you blinked in response. We celebrated and filled your ear with words of love before you slipped back to sleep.

You decided to have Janet, Susan, and Caitlin be with you when you left us. That was so fitting—truly a “that's just Beth” moment. In reality though, you'll be with us always, and we're forever grateful to call you family. As for me, I'll keep the promise I made to you last summer when you said to me, “After I'm gone, you have to be my sister's sister.” I love you, Susan, and all our family and will do my best to look after them in your stead. We miss you, we love you, and we promise to honor you by living the lives you want for us, ones filled with love and adventure—until we're together again.
Kim

I met Beth years ago when she worked at Spirit Square.  We were good friends and then I lost track of her.  However, I have thought of her often over the years and tried to find her to reconnect.  I learned of her passing in such an extraordinary way that I feel compelled to share it with you.  Beth was such a wonderful person and I feel her loss eventhough I haven't spoken to her in years.  If you would like to contact me, please feel free to do so. 

Debbie Fitts

It was a pleasure knowing sweet Beth!  Our thoughts and prayers are with the family.

Beth was loved by all that knew her.  She will be truly missed.  I loved to talk with her.  She always made me feel loved.  Our neighborhood has lost a wonderful person.    Love, Janice Woodson

Sending lots of love from your April Drive friends.  You were wonderful neighbors, and we have so many good memories!  So very, very sorry. Take care, Janet, Kathy and Susan

OBITUARY

Elizabeth Frances Livingston

January 6, 1959 – November 11, 2014

McEwen Funeral Home & Cremation @ Myers Park

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