Billie Grace (Ketchem) Clark, 85, went home to be with the Lord peacefully on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, at her home with family after a hard-fought illness. Billie was born on June 29, 1940, in Slocomb, Alabama to her mother Audrey Mae (White) (Ketchem) Wilson and her father Shelby Ketchem.
She is survived by her daughter, Terri Lyn (Boyles) Jennings (Robert); two sons, Gregory Clark and Grant Clark. Eight grandchildren, Ashley (Boyles) Martin-Culet (Michael), Amber (Boyles) Bibiloni (David), Christopher Knoff (Ashley), Jessica (Knoff) Garcia, Samantha Knoff, Jonathan Knoff, Courtney (Knoff) Allen (Michael) and Brittany Clark (Dustin); and sixteen great-grandchildren. Preceding her in death is her husband of 50 years, Gerald (Jerry) Kavanaugh Clark(2009) and her loving parents.
Billie Grace was born and raised in Slocomb, Alabama. Throughout her youth, she was an active member of the First Baptist Church in Slocomb. She was a graduate of Slocomb High School in 1957. During her senior year, she was the school, county, and district winner of the Birmingham News Oratorical Contest. She progressed to the state finals in Birmingham, AL., where she was awarded a college scholarship. In pursuit of her major in Elementary Education and a Minor in music, she attended Birmingham-Southern College in Birmingham, AL. and Troy University in Troy, AL. During the summer months, she attended the University of Alabama Extension Center in Dothan, AL. Billie Grace was blessed with intelligence, wit, and beauty. She was Geneva County’s Maid of Cotton in 1958, was voted Sophomore Beauty at Troy University in1959. She was a member of the Collegiate Singers, Baptist Student Union and Music Educator’s National Conference. Her sorority at Birmingham-Southern was Pi Beta Phi and as an adult, she was an active member of Beta Sigma Phi, an international service, cultural, and social sorority for women.
During the early years of her marriage, Billie Grace was a homemaker, where she devoted her time to her husband and three children. Her husband was in retail management for the F.W. Woolworth Company for 35 years and Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. for 12 years. They traveled to and lived in many different cities throughout the Southeastern part of the United States. When the children were older, Billie began her career. She was a Sales Analyst for the Regional Office of American Cryogenics, a Sales and Market Research Specialist involving organizing in-store promotions and radio commercials, a Sales Trainer and Sales Representative for the Southeast region for Bic Corporation for 15 years. Billie also worked for the Duval County Public School System in Jacksonville, FL for 13 years. She worked in Special Education for one year and in the Library Media Center for 12 years. She retired in 2004.
Billie Grace was proud of her upbringing and of her small town of Slocomb, Alabama. The values that she had learned from her family and friends in that small town stayed with her throughout her lifetime. She had a passionate love and gift for writing poetry and short stories. She enjoyed collecting antiques and spending time with her family. She was a loving and devoted mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She always looked for the good in others and was a loyal and trusted friend. She loved deeply and touched so many lives. Above all, she loved the Lord with all her heart and is rejoicing in Heaven.
A memorial service for Billie Grace will be held at Thomas B Dobies Funeral Home on February 26, 2026, at 2 pm.
Thomas B. Dobies Funeral Home- Hudson Chapel
9944 Hudson Ave.
Hudson, FL 34667
(727) 868-4441
