Lettie Joe Walker, age 88, passed away Saturday night with her children around her following a heart attack a week earlier.
Lettie Joe was born and rasied in Chattanooga, the only child of Bennett Burrell Rankin and Maude Deakins Rankin, both of whom preceded her in death. Through the generosity of her favorite uncle, Sam Deakins, she was able to attend East Tennessee State Teachers College in Johnson City, TN from which she graduated in 1941 with a degree in Education and Home Economics. Soon after, she moved to Jasper to teach Home Economics at Marion County High School. There she met Ralph Walker, the school's shop teacher, who immediately fell in love with her declaring then, and repeatedly throughout their many years together, that she was "the prettiest woman I've ever seen." Lettie Joe and Ralph were married in 1944 spending almost 40 blissful years together until Ralph's death in 1983. The couple made their home and raised their family in Jasper where Ralph worked as an agent with the University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service and Lettie Joe taught Second Grade at Jasper Elementary School. Upon their retirement in the 1970s, the couple split their time between Jasper and Ruskin, Florida, where they maintained a travel trailer during the winter months.
Lettie Joe was a loving and generous mother, a devoted wife, and a kind, thoughtful, and caring friend. Her warmth and compassion for everyone she met was one of her most endearing and memorable traits. She was also an accomplished quilter, a gifted knitter, and a very talented crocheter often bestowing the fruits of her labors as gifts to her friends and family members. An excellent cook, her chocolate meringue pies were coveted by all who were fortunate enough to sample them, and she was besieged with requests to produce as many as she could. She generously obliged sometimes baking over 100 pies in a year all of which she gave away.
She is survived by her two children Dr. Joe Ralph Walker (Martha) of Knoxville, TN and Ann Walker-King (Ken) of Nashville, TN, as well as a "chosen" son Thomas Barnes (Darlene) of Jasper, TN and his children Jeremy and Nathan. She leaves behind four grandchildren: Matt Walker of Louisville, KY; Erica Thompson (John) of Knoxville, TN; Jonathan King, of Berkeley, CA; Christopher King of Nashville, TN; and, a step-grandchild, Lauren Menefee of Knoxville, TN.
Lettie Joe was a member of the Jasper Church of Christ. Earlier this year, she moved to Nashville, TN to be closer to her family and became a resident of the St. Paul Retirement Community, where she enjoyed the last months of her life in a welcoming and supportive environment of new friends. She was diligent, however, in maintaining ongoing contact with her several cherished longtime friends from East Tennessee and elsewhere to the last days of her life.
Visitation with the family will be Tuesday evening from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm at Rogers Funeral Home in Jasper.
Funeral services will be held at 11:00 am on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2008 at Rogers Funeral Home in Jasper. Interment will be at Pine Grove Cemetery in Jasper, TN.