Paula Kent Breedlove

Memorial services celebrating the life of Paula Murle Breedlove will be held 10:00 AM Saturday, October 25, 2014, at Stewart Family Funeral Home with Chaplain Elwood Stetson officiating. Visitation will be 5:30 to 7:30 PM Friday, October 24, 2014. A 9:00 AM burial service at Rose Lawn Cemetery will precede the memorial. Paula Breedlove passed peacefully into the arms of her Lord Jesus Christ on October 21, 2014, at The Heights of Tyler, surrounded by her loving family. Paula was born in Longview on March 8, 1924, to Murlene Felts Kent Steele and Paul Kent. Moving to Tyler as a young girl, Paula graduated from Tyler High School in 1941, where she met the love of her life, Bob Breedlove. They married March 7, 1942, and enjoyed over 72 years together as one before Bob passed away on July 30, 2014. When Bob reported for active duty in June, 1942, Paula stayed in Tyler. After the war ended, they made their home and reared their family in Tyler, investing their lives in the people and community that they loved. Paula and Bob loved to travel, and although they travelled around the world to many places, they especially enjoyed the beautiful sights of North America on long road trips to visit their children and grandchildren. And they always loved coming home to Tyler. It was Paula’s lifelong mission to spread the good news of Jesus Christ by loving and serving her family. She was an avid Bible student and teacher. Paula enthusiastically participated in the lives of her children and grandchildren in many ways, but she particularly invested in them spiritually. Among the grandchildren’s sweetest memories are the mornings in bed with Mimi and Papa doing devotions and praying. Every member of the family knew that they were prayed for every day, and everyone remembers the engaging conversations about life and faith with Mimi in the room. Paula had a wonderful gift of hospitality and entertained countless friends, family members, and missionaries in their home. She was long considered one of Tyler's best cooks and served as the first camp cook at Pine Cove Conference Center serving the delicious meals for which she was so well known. She manifested her love, loyalty and commitment to God in word and deed, bringing joy, kindness, and wisdom to everyone she met. She freely expressed gratitude and thankfulness, was kind and gentle, loved to laugh, sing and dance, and forever took pleasure in the beauty and wonder of God’s creation. She and Bob particularly worked to strengthen marriages and families and loved teaching married couples’ Sunday school classes. For years, Bob and Paula would set up a soft-drink stand in the back alley each Friday to host a short break for sanitation workers. The week of Thanksgiving, they would cook and serve a seated meal for these service workers. Even though Paula’s mobility was severely limited for 15 years, she greeted everyone with a smile and an encouraging word. She loved music of all kinds, she and Bob sang the great hymns of the Christian faith to one another, and she continued singing hymns after his death. Paula treasured Bob and all her many family members. She is survived by their son, Jim and Sue Breedlove of Orinda, California, their children and grandchildren; Emily Breedlove and Roy Moore of Austin; Carolyn and Steven Hawley and their children, Andrew, Emma and Owen of San Diego; and Katherine Breedlove and husband Josh Lanthier-Welch of Honolulu, Hawaii; her son, Mike and Kay Breedlove of Tyler and their children and grandchildren: David and Kelly Breedlove, Jr. and their children Kent, Isabella, and Paul of Ft. Worth; Leslie and Matt Daly and their children, Carter and Kate of Ft. Worth; her daughter, Jan and Jackson Smith of Atlanta, Georgia, and Amelia Island, Florida, with children and grandchildren: Sallie Compton and her children, Trip, Kent, Harlin and Drew of New Smyrna Beach, Florida; Amy and Jeffrey Frontier of Jacksonville, Florida; Jenny and Damon Sledge and their children, Jannah and Sheppard, of Reno, Nevada; and Allison and Taylor Harkey and their children, Sophie and Ella of Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida; and her son, Steve and Sally Breedlove of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, with their children and grandchildren: Kent and Melissa Breedlove and their children Joseph, Maggie, and Jesse of Calgary, Canada; Ellen and Tony Hopkins and their daughter Amelia of Raleigh, North Carolina; Steven and Courtney Breedlove and their children, Steven, Sam, and Claire Elizabeth of Birmingham, Alabama; Millie and James Dasher and their children, Elijah and Thaddeus of Chapel Hill North Carolina; and Thomas and Kate Breedlove of Durham, North Carolina. In addition, Paula is survived by her faithful brother Bob Kent of Emerald Bay who loved and cared for Paula and Bob sacrificially and generously. The entire family wishes to express our sincere appreciation to Atria Willow Park, Azalea Trails, and Heights of Tyler for the outstanding care given to our parents as they progressed through the various levels of care. We are so grateful for the special care and friendship shown to Mom by Gayla Cyr and the Sunday night care group led by Terry and Nina Howlett. In the spirit of Paula’s generous nature and commitment to Jesus Christ, the family requests that in lieu of flowers, you consider a donation to The Educational Radio Foundation, P.O. Box 8525, Tyler 75711, Pine Cove Christian Conference Center, P.O. Box 9055, Tyler 75711, and Lighthouse for Christ, P.O. Box 8525, Tyler, 75711.

Paula Kent Breedlove

March 8, 1924 - October 21, 2014