Betty Householder Casey

Betty Householder Casey, 85, of Kingsport, passed away Sunday, October 13, 2024, at The Blake Kingsport, following several years of suffering with Alzheimer's disease. Mrs. Casey was very active in volunteer work in Kingsport and participated widely in community theater.

Mrs. Casey was born April 7, 1939, in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. She was the daughter of the late Theodore and Minnie Householder. She was preceded in death by her sister Lillian Householder Paxton, her brother-in-law Jimmie Paxton and her brother Jack Dale Householder. She is survived by her husband Jim Casey, daughter Beth(Bill) Donnell, son Matt(Monica) Casey, grandchildren Nathan(Sierra) and Cassie Donnell and Lindsay and Henry Casey, and great grandson Cooper Donnell. Additional survivors include niece Vickie (Bob) Lilly in Greeneville, Tennessee and several great nieces and nephews.

Betty attended public schools in Greeneville, Tennessee and graduated from Greeneville High School in 1957. She subsequently attended 2 years at Carson-Newman College in Jefferson City, Tennessee followed by 2 years at East Tennessee State. She graduated from East Tennessee in 1961 with a bachelor's degree in History and a minor in Library Science. After graduation Betty relocated to Tyson Corners, Maryland where she worked as a high school librarian. In 1962 she felt a call to full time Christian service and prepared for this by enrolling at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Upon completion of her studies she was awarded a Masters in Religious Education. With her training, Mrs. Casey began her full time Christian service as Director of Children's Work at First Baptist Church Knoxville Tennessee.

While serving at the church in Knoxville, Betty met her husband-to-be, Jim Casey, and they were married August 27, 1966. She resigned her job to start a family in 1967 and in August 1968 they were blessed with the birth of their daughter Beth. In fall 1969 Jim completed his graduate studies and took a job with Tennessee Eastman. The family moved to Kingsport in late 1969, joined First Baptist, and established Kingsport as their "forever home". Their second child Matt was born in April 1971. The Caseys found Kingsport to be a great place to live and raise their family.

In Kingsport, Betty was a super volunteer. She worked in many and varied areas of service at First Baptist, including directing over 167 weddings. She took on service and leadership responsibilities in the Holston Valley Hospital Auxiliary, Christian Woman's Club, PTA, Junior Woman's Club, Kingsport Public Library, Meals on Wheels, and Kingsport Chamber Funfest. Betty's second love beyond volunteer service was participating in Community Theater. She played roles in productions by the Kingsport Theater Guild, Showboat Dinner Theater, Johnson City Community Theater and the Light Company of First Baptist Church including Funfest productions. In addition, she regularly presented historical monologues to Kingsport civic groups. In recognition of Betty's acting talent she received an "Artist of the Year" Award from the Kingsport Arts Council.

The family will receive friends on October, 20, 2024 from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.in the First Baptist Church Kingsport atrium, followed by a Celebration of Life Service at 2:30 p.m. in the sanctuary. All friends and acquaintances of Betty are invited to attend.

The family would like to extend gratitude and deep appreciation to the staff at The Blake for the excellent care they have provided during this long and trying illness. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to First Baptist Kingsport, Kingsport Theater Guild, or Kingsport Public Library.

Trinity Memorial Centers Funeral Home (423-723-8177) is honored to serve the family.