Betty Jo Presnell Collins Boyt

On the morning of Tuesday, July 30, 2024, our beautiful, precious mama, Betty Jo Presnell Collins Boyt, left this world of pain and suffering with her loved ones by her side. She left us to join many other cherished loved ones waiting for her in her eternal home, along with her Lord and Redeemer, Jesus. It is a comfort to know that she is now whole and healed from her courageous fight with cancer and dementia, through which her faith and trust in her Savior grew and was evident to all around her. Though we will miss her kind, loving, and generous heart, as well as her determined, sassy, and stubborn spirit, we know that there will be a day that we will be reunited with her. We did not say "good-bye" to her, just "see you later". Betty Jo, as she was called, was born August 16, 1945, on a farm in Johnson City, Tennessee, into a large family of fifteen children to the late Miles Newton Presnell and Letha Wyatt Presnell. Mama deeply loved her Tennessee mountain roots and the Volunteers, and she made frequent trips "home" to see her family and loved ones. She always loved talking about and sharing stories of what it was like growing up in a big family on her daddy's tobacco farm. In 1964, our mama met our daddy, Bob Collins, at a church function on New Year's Eve. She said that the fact that he was in his Air Force uniform is what attracted her to him telling us, "When I saw your dad in that uniform, I knew I was going to marry him." Their romance quickly blossomed into a love story that lasted for nearly 43 years after she married him the day after her graduation from Boones Creek School in 1964. The first years of their marriage were influenced by Daddy's time in the military as he served in the Vietnam War. After spending time in Texas as a nurse's aide while he was deployed, she and Daddy eventually found themselves in Savannah, Georgia, where he returned home and was finishing his time with the Air Force. Eventually, they returned home to Johnson City, where they started their family, adding two daughters and a son. Life took our family on many detours to live in places like Fort Myers, Florida; Orlando, Florida; Greenville, South Carolina; and, eventually, Newnan, Georgia, where we finally settled down to make our home in 1979. Through the years, God added to the family by way of marriages and births, including 15 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. After the loss of our daddy in 2007 to cancer, God saw fit to bring to Mama's life another loving, attentive husband, Ronnie Boyt, to whom she was married for 15 years. We are so thankful for all that he was to her, the love he showered on her, and the sacrificial care he gave as she fought so hard during her illness. He picked up the mantle of being not only Mama's husband, but her caregiver, chauffeur, and all the things that come with caring for a sick spouse. Besides being a homemaker and raising her children, she was a longtime employee of Clover Electronics, where she made many lifelong friends. She finished out her time in the workforce at ACS and eventually Sivaco. In addition to spending time with the family she loved so fiercely, Mama enjoyed sewing, baking, gardening, shopping, thrifting, yard sales, reading, decorating her home, time at the beach, and all-you-can-eat crab legs! She always believed in leaving the house looking your best, even if it was just to the grocery store. These last several years, sitting on the front porch enjoying being outside was one of her favorite past-times. She was a dedicated member of Providence Baptist church, where she was part of the choir and the women's ministry. The funeral service celebrating Betty Jo's life is Saturday, August 3, 2024, at 11:00 Am in the chape of McKoon Funeral Home, 38 Jackson Street, in Newnan, with Dr. Ken Norton officiating. Burial will follow the service at Oak Hill Cemetery. The family will receive friends Friday evening from 6:00 PM until 8:00 PM at the funeral home. She is preceded in death by her parents, Miles and Letha Wyatt Presnell; her first husband, Robert Edwin Collins; her grand-daughter, Phebe Grace Hall; great-granddaughter Oakley Monroe Faulkner; her siblings Pauline, Harvey, George, Ida, Robert, Earl, Rebecca, Roy, Teddy, and Nathan. She is survived by her husband, Ronnie Boyt, along with her children Lynne Faulkner (Randall), Brian Collins (Spring), and Amy Collins; step-daughter April Savage (Justin); grand-children Elizabeth Faulkner; Scott Faulkner (Hope); William Faulkner (Tori); Rebekah Morgenstern (Nathan); Stephanie Hudson; Jonathan Collins (Shalie), Caroline Collins, Samuel Collins; Dixon Hall (Kristen); Emilee Smiley (Will); Joshua Kent; Emily Wilkerson (Kadney); great-grandchildren Owen, Magnolia, and Abram Faulkner; Adella, Neely, and Brecken Faulkner; Isaac Morgenstern; Liam Hudson and Keaton Johnson; and two step-grandchildren, Jacob and Andy Savage; siblings Tommy (Paulette) Presnell, Jackie (Doris) Presnell, Julia Ellis, and Sue (Kenneth) Phillips; and nieces and nephews too numerous to name. We would like to thank anyone who ever showed Mama any kindness and token of love during her illness, whether it was prayer, food, visits, cards, gifts, money, or any other way you may have eased her heart and mind during this time. We cannot forget the loving staff of Guiding Light Hospice who helped us all navigate these last days of Mama's life. You were most assuredly a guiding light to us in this time of need. Condolences may be expressed to the family online at www.mckoon.com. McKoon Funeral Home & Crematory 770-253-4580