Betty Beard

Betty Verleen (Michel) Beard, born on June 28, 1931, in Valliant, Oklahoma, passed away peacefully on March 14, 2025, in Mesquite, Texas, at the age of 93. Betty's life was a testament to kindness and love. She is survived by her daughter, Teresa Beard; her son, Michel Beard; her daughter-in-law, Beth Beard; her sister, Weibua Hardeman; and her grandchildren, Katy Pickens, Nathan Beard, and Tanner Beard.

Betty's early years were marked by her involvement in high school sports, where she was involved in organizing and playing girls' basketball in her small hometown. She moved to Dallas in 1953, where she began her career at Southwestern Bell (now AT&T). While living in Dallas, she met and married Sherman in 1960. Betty raised her family in Mesquite, and she would come to call it home for almost 65 years. As a grandmother, she poured her heart into caring for her grandchildren and later embraced the joy of becoming a great grandmother.

In her leisure time, Betty found great happiness in gardening, cultivating an assortment of vegetables and flowers. Her love for flowers took her to the gardens at Shreveport and Hot Springs to see the flowers blooming. She enjoyed watching basketball, no matter who was playing. Throughout her life, Betty remained grounded in her faith, knowing Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior, and exemplified treating others with kindness, welcoming them as if they were her own family.

Funeral services will be held to honor Betty's life and the impact she had on those who knew her on March 21, 2025 at 10 a.m. at New Hope Funeral Home in Sunnyvale, Texas. Betty's legacy of love and compassion will forever be remembered by her family and friends.

Betty was preceded in death by: her husband, Sherman Beard; and her brothers, Roy Michel and Gardner Michel.