Betty A. Meeks

Betty Ann Meeks (Blaylock), born Friday, September 7, 1928 in Wallins Creek, Kentucky, to Elsie and Paris Blaylock in their house on the hill that her grandfather built. She spread her wings and flew home on Sunday morning, August 19, 2018 in Canton, Georgia, to be with her savior, Jesus Christ, whom she prayed to every night, and to join her husband of 70 years who has waited patiently for her for 21 years. She was 19 days away from turning 90 years old.

She spent her childhood in Wallins Creek, climbing trees and playing in the Cumberland River with her brothers and cousins. It was a very hard and simple life, but pure. She lost her father at the age of 5 to a coal mining accident, therefore her mother needed to provide for the family. She helped her mother run “Blaylock’s Grocery” and take care of the house and assume the female role at home for Paul, Jack, and Billy Joe. In her teens, she noticed a handsome young man watching her as she caught the school bus, when she swam at the pool, or went to the movies. They dated a while and then he joined the Army. When he completed his tour, he moved to Chicago for employment. Betty attended Berea College after high school to study nursing. One day she decided to give up that plan and get on a bus headed for Chicago to pursue a different dream. In a Cook County courthouse on Thursday, January 29, 1948, she married that handsome young man, Walter Eugene Meeks, and he became her devoted husband and the father of their 4 children. In Chicago, Betty was employed at Ford Motor Corporation and Continental Can Company. In 1962, they moved to Hazel Crest, Illinois, where they lived until 1987. Betty worked in food service at the Charlie Diamond Restaurant and the Green Shingle Restaurant. For her entire adult life, she was an avid bowler and was in a ladies bowling league for decades. She loved to knit, crochet, and made many blankets for her daughters. She and her best friend, Ruth, spent many nights after their bowling league creating dozens of handmade Christmas ornaments. She loved to dance, read, do crossword and jigsaw puzzles, play cards, and listen to country music. After Wally retired in 1988, they moved to Melbourne, Florida. There she continued her bowling league. Her love of plants flourished and she had quite the green thumb: growing abundant and long lasting jasmine, aloe vera, ivy, and especially her favorite flowers, red roses. She worked one last job and served a candlelight congratulatory meal to new parents on the maternity ward at Holmes Regional Medical Center and loved it. Betty loved clothes, shoes, purses and jewelry. She loved chicken of all forms, corn, peas, strawberries, watermelon, ranch dressing, and “life’s blood”…coffee!!! Her door was always open and the coffee was always on the stove. She could stay up half the night talking and telling stories, drinking coffee all the while, and it didn’t phase her. Later in life, her memory started to fail some. What didn’t fade was her unconditional, deep, devoted, and loyal love for her family. She was a snuggler, a hugger, and a kisser of all. Pictures adorned all walls and surfaces of her home. She was a generous, free spirit and loved to be on the go.

She managed to push and fight through heart attacks, diabetes, severe reflux and heartburn, hypertension, GI bleeds, pulmonary hypertension, COPD, hypothyroidism, bladder surgery, a pacemaker, dislocating both shoulders, a colostomy, losing some vision in one eye, hearing loss, repeated problems with edema, and CHF, and wearing oxygen that she absolutely hated. Until recently, you would never know it.

She loved to sit outside and have the sun warm her body. She excitedly watched the animals play and listened to the birds. She would loudly sing her songs, play two card bingo, and shout out answers to fill in the blank memory joggers. She clung to her puzzle books and her cup of coffee until she was just too tired to go on. She waited until no one was watching or able to intervene and slipped out while she could, yearning for the peace only Heaven could provide her.

She was a very strong fighter, and a soft place to lay your head if you needed to. She would love you a “Bushel and a Peck” any time it was needed.

Betty is pre-deceased by her devoted husband, Walter E. Meeks; her father, Paris Blaylock; her mother, Elsie Mae Blaylock; and her brothers, Paul Blaylock, Jack Blaylock, and Billy Joe Blaylock. She is survived by her 4 loving, loyal children who meant the world to her and her to them: Jessie Cumpston (Ran) of Wallins Creek, Kentucky, Jimmy Meeks (Terri) of Lansing, Illinois, Carolyn Pacilio (Gary) of Canton, Georgia, and Kenneth Meeks (Lisa) of Palm Bay, Florida. She has 8 grandchildren whom she loved dearly: Kenneth Cumpston (Mary K), Randy Cumpston (Teresa), the late Charles Cumpston (Ellen Blanton), Julie Bittner, Angela Smit (Steve), Erica Firlit (Kenny), Ashley Pacilio Cornell (John), and Kristen Pacilio. She has 14 great grandchildren who adore her: Brooke Cumpston, Alex Cumpston, Jason Cumpston, Mirissa Fugate (Corey), Charles Cumpston (Shelby), the late Christopher Bittner, Brittney Shumate (Joseph), Brianna Bittner, Madeline Smit, Tanner Smit, Avery Gene Smit, Alexis Firlit, Brayden Firlit, and Brooklyn Firlit. She has one great, great grandchild: Charlie Cumpston.

Betty has had many loving friends and caregivers.

A special thank you to the nurses at Northside Cherokee Hospital, and the caregivers at Emeritus/Brookdale and Trinity Manor for your loving care.

Visitation will be at the Life Event Center at Florida Memorial, 5950 South US Highway 1, Rockledge, FL, on Saturday, August 25, 2018 from 1:30-3:30 with the funeral service at 3:30pm.

Her earthly body will “lay down for a little while” next to her loving husband in the New Masonic section of Florida Memorial Gardens in Rockledge, FL. Her soul will be at peace, having no more suffering or pain, breathing freely, and enjoying some sunshine. She is probably watching Animal Planet, singing loud and strong, or working on a crossword with Wally. They are probably snacking on some Cheerios, Nutty Buddy, or peanut butter fudge and sipping a cup of coffee while both of them await the time when their entire family who misses them so terribly will join them “somewhere over the rainbow” for all eternity. For now, they will bless us with knowing that they are always with us, dropping pennies from Heaven and feathers in our path and painting rainbows in the sky.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Heart Association.

Floral arrangements will be welcomed as this was one of her many joys in life.