Obituaries: Jeane Law, former Texas WMU president

Jeane Law, former president of Texas Woman’s Missionary Union and board member of the Baptist Standard, died April 3 in Lubbock after an extended battle with cancer.

Jeane Law, former president of Texas Woman’s Missionary Union and board member of the Baptist Standard, died April 3. (Lubbock Avalanche-Journal Photo)She and her husband, Dan, met in the fifth grade, and they began dating during the summer of 1952, while she was home from Auburn University, and he was home from the University of Alabama.

After he served in the Army, they moved to Lubbock in 1955, so he could play football and finish his education at Texas Tech University.

During those years, she taught third grade at A.C. Jackson Elementary.

Friends and family said her greatest passion was telling others about the love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ, which she did through the joy, laughter and kindness of her daily life and her service in WMU and the other organizations she served. They include First Baptist Church in Lubbock, Lubbock Baptist Association, Sherrick Retirement Home, Contact Lubbock and Wayland Baptist University.

She is survived by her husband of 60 years; daughter, Jan Thetford and husband, David; son, Dee; son, Sam and his wife, Julie; son, Tom and his wife, D’Linda; as well as her sisters, Annie Mae Connelly and Mary Clacker; and nine grandchildren.

Visitation will be April 6 in the parlor of First Baptist Church in Lubbock from 4 to 6 p.m. The service will be April 7 at 11 a.m. at the church.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the WMU Jeane Law Leadership Development Endowment Fund, 2320 Indiana Avenue, Lubbock, Texas 78410.

Dick Hurst, 80, March 31 in Tyler. A graduate Dick Hurstof Baylor University and Baylor College of Medicine, he served as a medical missions volunteer more than 20 years. He traveled with the Texas Baptist Men’s Disaster Relief crew to Iran following Operation Desert Storm. This service led to many mission trips around the world—Macedonia, Brazil, Thailand, Sumatra, Iraq, Turkey, Kosovo, Russia, Poland, Northern Ireland and Mexico. After the war in Kosovo, he also helped restore a flour mill. He was a longtime deacon at First Baptist Church in Tyler and enjoyed attending Baylor sporting events. He served on the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Coordinating Council from 2000 to 2003. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Jesmarie. He is survived by his wife, Betty; sons, Rick, Dan and Allen; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Sam Beam III, 80, March 18 in Haslet. Beam was a member of the Hardin-Simmons University Cowboy Band and was the bullwhip artist for the Sam Beam IIIhalftime shows and parades throughout Texas. He served several churches in music ministry including First Baptist churches in Eastland, Ballinger, Coleman, Gatesville and Haslet. He was preceded in death by his sister, Fairy Orr. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Carolyn; son, Bill; daughters, Betsy Woods, Tigi Steward and Tammy Malone; and six grandchildren.