Betty Jo Sample, born on Feb. 18, 1936, entered her eternal rest on April 15, 2023, at the home of her daughter and son-in-law, DeAnn and John Lynch, in Natchitoches, La. She was 87 years old. Betty Jo’s visitation will be Wednesday, April 19, 2023, from 2 p.m. until 3 p.m. with funeral service to be held on the same date at 3 p.m. at Gallagher Funeral Home, 3994 Monroe Highway, Ball, LA 71405. Interment will follow at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park, 4000 Monroe Highway, Ball, LA 71405. The Rev. Ronnie Parks shall preside over the service.

Betty Jo graduated from Louisiana College with a degree in education, and later earned a Masters Degree at Northeast Louisiana University in Monroe, Louisiana. She had a passion for teaching children, and taught in schools in Alexandria, Monroe, and Sulphur, La. Betty Jo ultimately served as the Principal of Maplewood Middle School in Sulphur until she retired in 1991.

Above all, Betty Jo loved the Lord, and devoted much of herself to ministry. Always a teacher at heart, Betty Jo was a devoted Sunday School teacher who served alongside her beloved husband, Dr. James Alton Sample (“Alton”), at the churches he pastored across Louisiana. She loved going to church and enjoyed the fellowship of her friends. The devotion she shared with Alton to their ministry greatly impacted the lives of her family along with countless others.

Betty Jo also loved her family, and enjoyed spending time with them. She was blessed with a long and happy marriage of 63 years to her husband, Alton, until his passing in 2018. She was also an avid gardener, and never hesitated to dream up a project for herself and Alton out in their flower beds or around their home. Further, she loved to entertain, hosting countless dinner parties over the course of her life for her friends and family.

Betty Jo is survived by her daughter, Margaret DeAnn Lynch and her husband John Michael Lynch; her grandchildren, Jane Ellen Close and her fiancée Ryan Joshua Hair, Katelyn Anne Close and her husband Jerimey Todd Hammersley, and James Ray Close and his wife, Victoria Marie Close. Further, she is survived by her four great-grandchildren, Gracie Kate Hammersley, John David Hammersley, Ashton Ray Hair, and Roman James Hair. Further still, Betty Jo is survived by her siblings, Billy Hickman, along with Frank A. Hickman and his wife, Jody Hickman.

The Lynch, Close, Hammersley, and Hair families would like to thank Betty Jo’s wonderful caregiver, Linda Moore, for her diligent and compassionate care.

“But now it has been manifested to His holy ones, to whom God chose to make known the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; it is Christ in you, the hope for glory. It is He whom we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. For this I labor and struggle, in accord with the exercise of His power working within me.” – Colossians 1:26-29.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that memorials be made to Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home, 7200 DeSiard Street, Monroe, LA 71203.