Betty Castle

On Thursday, August 20, 2020, Betty Castle said "Bye, honey" for the last time to the world and family she loved. To us, she was Grandma, Mother, Mommy, and much more—the distinguished matriarch of a large and loving family. She was a friend to all and a profound believer in the power of prayer. You were unlikely to find a more generous and judicious listener, and her eyes twinkled when she laughed her laugh that could brighten even the darkest of moments.

Betty was a spontaneous and deeply gifted storyteller who was fond of regaling her grandkids with memories of her life growing up in Paintsville, a mining town in the beautiful hills of Kentucky. She would talk about the tough but fulfilling work of gardening and canning vegetables and the playful childhood antics of her and her siblings. She loved spending time with her family, listening to gospel music, going on road trips, and going to church. Those who were lucky enough to taste it can attest that she made the best fried chicken on earth.

Betty’s life was not always easy, but she lived with abundant hope, optimism, and love. Even in times of illness and great personal difficulty, she cherished the simple fact of being alive on God’s earth. She took great care getting dressed up in the morning, especially for church, and she loved her perfumes, creams, and jewelry. This was a sign not of vanity but of the joy and pride she took in living a life of simple, elegant, and dignified beauty.

Betty was born in Kentucky coal country during the Great Depression—a very different time and place from the industrial city of Springfield, Ohio, where she came to spend much of her life. She was a witness to a changing world, especially a world of better opportunities for women. Betty had a limited education and never learned to drive, but thanks to her work and sacrifice, her daughters and granddaughters have become educated professionals, mighty women of the world. In 1950, she married her husband, Edward Castle, when she was only 14 years old. The marriage was perhaps unlikely to be so successful, but Betty was tough, resilient, self-sacrificing, and full of love. The legacy of their union and hard work is a large and happy family that continues to grow and prosper today. In a world where so many things fall apart, she provided her family with a center that held fast and spread love, kindness, and joy indiscriminately to all.

The second of four siblings, Betty Jean Castle was born on December 11, 1936 in Johnson County, Kentucky to Johnny and Ruby Charles. She was raised in Butcher Holler, the land of many coal miner’s daughters, by her uncle and aunt, Big Daddy and Big Mother, who provided a caring upbringing when it was impossible for her parents to do so. Her mother, Ruby, died when Betty was young, and Johnny drove a Greyhound bus for a living. The kindness and truly big hearts of Big Daddy and Big Mother are an inspiring testament to the strength and lasting importance of family through many generations. Without them, it’s difficult to say what Betty’s life—and the life of her future family—would have become.

Betty was preceded in death by her husband, Edward Castle; her grandson Jeffrey Dean; her sisters, Lillian and Thelma; and her brother, Earl. She is survived by her five children and their spouses: Brenda and Tim Dean, Julia and Marv Martin, Patricia and Doug Castle, Ruby and Mike Jenkins, and Glenn and Sterlean Castle. She lives on through her thirteen surviving grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren, all of whom she loved with a rare and mighty ardor.

Betty often told about how as a girl, she would walk for miles to church carrying a lantern to light her way. Her early devotion to the principles of kindness, generosity, and faith led her to live with grace and sincere hope for a better life beyond. Her example is a shining light as we ponder the great, unknowable mysteries of life and death and yearn, in her memory, for a kinder and more loving world.