Billy Jo Gordon, 85

Billy Jo Gordon, 85, of Hughesville, died Tuesday, September 25, 2012 at the Sylvia G. Thompson Residence Center.

Funeral services will be 2 p.m. Friday, September 28, 2012 at McLaughlin Funeral Chapel. Burial will be in High Point Cemetery in Hughesville. The family will receive friends from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the funeral chapel. Memorial contributions are suggested to Crossroads Hospice, in care of the funeral chapel.

She was born August 7, 1927 in Huggins, MO, the daughter of the late Don E. and Opal L. (Duff) Garrison. On November 22, 1951, in Houston, MO, she was united in marriage to Eugene C. Gordon, who preceded her in death on January 2, 2004. Survivors include two sons, Joe Don Gordon and Kent Eugene Gordon, of Hughesville; one daughter, Nancy Gordon, of Springfield, MO; a sister, Jeanie Walker, of Sioux City, IA; and one grandson.

Billy Jo was known as “Jo” to her family and friends. She graduated from Houston High School and attended Southwest State Teachers College in Springfield, MO from 1948 to 1949. Following her education, she taught in several one room school houses throughout the Ozarks. After her marriage, she and her husband were co-owners and operated floral shops in Cabool and Houston from 1954 to 1961. It was at this time she moved to the Hughesville area with her husband where they spent many years farming and raising their family. She was a member of the Hughesville Baptist Church, a beloved Sunday school teacher, and dedicated 4-H Leader. She was active in PTO and several other school related activities. She enjoyed spending time with her family, assisting her husband with farming and trucking, and making their family farm house a home.