Mary Kate Dugger Arnold, 85, of Butler, Tenn., went home to be with her Lord while surrounded by her loving family and special brother, Frank, on Wednesday, July 29, 2015 at her residence, after a hard fought battle with a lengthy illness.
She was born on May 30, 1930, in Carter County, Tenn., to the late Ed Dugger and Dorothy Pierce Dugger Oliver. She was married to the late J.E. Arnold on June 27, 1947, who was her husband for 36 years. Along with her parents and her husband, she was preceded in death by three brothers, Michael “Mick” Oliver, Ron Oliver and Bill Dugger.
Mary Kate is survived by her daughters, Phyllis Arnold Matherly (Mack), DeEtte Arnold Hampton (Herb), both of Butler, Tenn., Burnadene Arnold Blevins (Mark) of Knoxville, Tenn., and Lesa Arnold Brown (Tim) of Laurel Bloomery, Tenn.; four grandchildren, Duane Stout, Kevin Hampton, Liza Hampton Sykes and Jenna Brown Rouse; five great-grandchildren, Devin, Blade, Gage, Chloe and Carson; two great-great-grandchildren, Ashlynn and Carter; brothers, Tony Pierce (Ann) of Hampton and Frank Oliver (June) of Elizabethton; a sister, Betty Oliver Pritchard (Don) of Butler; a brother-in-law, Elwood Arnold of Butler; three sisters-in-law, Mary Arnold of Tucson, Ariz., Sue Arnold of Butler and Corrine Arnold of Indiana; and a host of nephews and nieces.
Mary Kate loved her church and was an active member of Little Doe Baptist Church. She was a member of the Beta Theta Women’s Club of Johnson County, and she was voted “Mother of the Year” award in 1989 by the Butler Ruritan. She was a hard worker along side her husband on the farm until his death. She then worked at Lakecrest Grill, Pleasant’s Store, T & J’s Grill and Craig’s Coffee House up until the time of her illness. She loved working in her garden and growing beautiful flowers. She was extremely talented when it came to sewing and painting ceramics.
A service to celebrate the life of Mary Kate Arnold will be conducted at 2 p.m. Saturday, August 1, at Little Doe Baptist Church, Butler, with the Rev. Kreg Smith officiating. The eulogy will be given by Betty Brown. Music will be by Becky Arnold, soloist. Interment will follow at Happy Valley Memorial Park. Active pallbearers will be grandchildren and sons-in-law. Honorary pallbearers will be her church family. Her family would like to say a special “Thank You” to her caregivers, Dr. Raina Sluder and friends who helped her through the years. The family will receive friends from noon until 2 p.m. Saturday, prior to the service. Friends may also visit with the family at her residence. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to The Pat Summitt Foundation (Finding a Cure for Alzheimer’s) at 520 W. Summitt Hill Drive, Suite 1101, Knoxville, TN 37902 or go online to www.patsummitt.org. Condolences may be sent to the family at our website, www.memorialfcelizabethton.com.
Memorial Funeral Chapel is serving the Arnold family.