LORETTA TUCKER
Loretta Tucker, age 55, of Altha passed away on August 3, 2023. She was born Sept 7, 1967, in Calhoun County to Opal Summerlin and Mancil Moody. She lived in Calhoun County all her life where she had her own business in housekeeping and was a member of the Pentecostal faith. She was preceded in death by her father, Mancil Moody, one brother, Jon Moody and her late husband, Larry Tucker. Survivors include her mother, Sandra Summerlin; two sisters, Angela Baldwin-Smith and Jill Guilford; two brothers, Tony Tucker and Shawn Moody; three daughters, Beth Shelton, Amanda Hamlin, and Danielle Tucker; nine grandchildren, Ashton and Corbin Shelton, Alexis Tucker, Brantley Hamlin, Cameron and Remington Pearson, Landon Tucker, Jason Cravens, and Aliyah McKinney.
A memorial service will be held at the Peavy Funeral Home Chapel Saturday August 12, 2023, with the family receiving friends and relatives from 12:00 PM CT until service time at 1:00 PM CT.
All arrangements are under the direction of Marlon Peavy at Peavy Funeral Home in Blountstown, FL. 850-674-2266
JOSEPH CHARLES “CHASE” KING
Joseph Charles “Chase” King, 38 of Altha, passed away Tuesday, August 1, 2023, unexpectedly in Panama City Beach. Chase was born May 6, 1985, in Blountstown to Eddie Joe and June Alday King. Chase received his bachelor’s degree in nursing and was working as a traveling nurse and had spent most of his working time at the Florida State Hospital and at the intensive care unit at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital. He was also a veteran who served in the United States Army in Qatar.
Chase leaves behind his wife Kristi O’Neill King; his daughter, Stella O’Neill King; his parents, Eddie Joe and June Alday King; his sister, Laurie Anne Banks and her husband Dwayne; his nephews, JJ and Brunson Banks and James McDowell and a niece Parker McDowell and one that is on the way; his sister in laws, Ashley (Josh) and Alli (Charles) O’Neill and Maddi (Dakota) Young; his father in law “FIL” Tom O’Neill and his mother in law Amy Henry and her husband Bob.
A memorial service to honor and to celebrate Chase’s life will be held 2:00 p.m. Saturday, August 5, 2023, with Reverend Gary Richerson and Brother Dwayne Banks officiating. A time of visitation will begin at 1:00 p.m. at Poplar Head Baptist Church.
Adams Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements. Online condolences may be made at adamsfh.com 850-674-5449.
JEFFERSON BATEMAN, JR.
Benjamin Jefferson Bateman Jr. passed away on Saturday, August 5, 2023, at the age of 80. Funeral services will be at 2:00pm on Monday, August 14, 2023, at Green Hills Funeral Home in Troy, Alabama, with Dr. Mallone Chandler officiating. A graveside service will be on Tuesday, August 15, 2023, at 11:00am EST at Lake Mystic Cemetery in Bristol, Florida. Family will meet friends there.
BJ or Jay was born in Panama City, Florida, on March 10, 1943, to Benjamin Jefferson Bateman Sr. and Louise C. Bateman. As a child, he lived throughout Alabama and Florida due to his father working with International Paper, then they settled in Blountstown, Florida, where he graduated high school. He attended Chipola Junior College, then Florida State University, where he met Betty Louise Bateman. They married on September 3, 1967. They moved to College Station, Texas, and he earned a Ph.D. in Physics from Texas A&M University focusing on cosmic radiation. Then, they moved to Troy in the early 1970’s to teach.
He was a professor at Troy University where he taught for 45 years before recently retiring. While he taught, he was also the Director of the State Junior Academy of Science, which is a U.S. Army program that gave out scholarships to high school science students who were pursuing a degree in science. He was a member of First Baptist Church since 1970 where he served as a deacon and Sunday school teacher. He also attended Bush Baptist Church and was involved in the Torah Club.
He was an Eagle Scout and a house parent at the Baptist Children’s home. As a physicist, he participated in the NASA Jove project doing research at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, with the space plasma group. He worked at Argonne National Lab in Chicago, Illinois, during the summers, he judged science fairs for the Junior Academy of Science, and he took pictures of Haley’s comet for Landmark Park.
He enjoyed being a husband, father, a grandfather, teaching, being at Mother’s Day Out with Betty, doing science experiments with Alaina, piddling, reading or watching science fiction, astronomy, fishing, playing dominoes, and traveling.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Betty Louise Bateman, and his parents, Benjamin Jefferson Bateman Sr. and Louise Chaffin Bateman. He is survived by his daughter, Christy Bateman; son, Geoffrey (Nickie) Bateman; granddaughter, Alaina Bateman; brother, Robert (Arlene) Bateman; niece, Leah Bateman; nephew, Michael (Lori) Bateman; many cousins, special friends, colleagues, and church family.
Honorary pallbearers are his Sunday school class and Torah Club.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to a charity of your choice. All local arrangements are under the direction of Marlon Peavy at Peavy Funeral Home in Blountstown, FL.
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