Eleanor Grace "Betsy" Mears

Eleanor Grace Friel Mears, known affectionately as “Betsy,” of Jones Road in Leicester, NC, and most recently at the Center on Aging and Health in Erwin, TN, went to be with Jesus on September 17, 2025.

Betsy was born on February 25, 1940, in Marlinton, WV, and was raised there. Working in Washington, D.C., with the FBI, she met her future husband, George Mears. Following marriage and two children, they relocated to Western North Carolina, where they began a long life. She raised her children as a homemaker, and then pursued a banking career, retiring in 2005. In 2009, she became a caretaker for her husband, George, who was diagnosed with cancer. After he passed away in 2013, she became an independent, productive member of her community, being a member of Bell Methodist Church in Leicester and pursuing a life of volunteer work. At home, she loved caring for her home and tending to her yard, plants, flowers, and was a lover of blue birds.

Betsy was preceded in death by her parents, Arthur and Hulda Friel; her brothers, Eugene, Elmer, Everett and Ernest Friel; and a granddaughter, Ashley Snodgrass.

Betsy is survived by her sister, Evilene and her husband Roy Beverage; son, Mark Mears and his wife Nicole; daughter, Joni Lynn Dorman and Joshua Bryant; five grandchildren, Aaron, Averie, Samuel, Isaiah, and Abigail; and a great grandchild, Mahagony.

The graveside service will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 23, at Bell Methodist Church Cemetery in Leicester with Pastors Rick Powell and Robert James officiating.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Bell United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 36, Leicester, NC 28748 or to Amedisys Hospice in Elizabethton, TN.

Groce Funeral Home on Patton Avenue is assisting the family.