Joe Thomas Newman

Coleman Funeral Home of Olive Branch Joe Thomas Newman, 82, of Byhalia, MS, passed away on Wednesday, October 8, 2025. Friends are invited to a visitation with the family on Friday, October 24, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m., with the service to follow at 11:00 a.m. at Coleman Funeral Home of Olive Branch. Interment will be held at Memphis Memory Gardens, 6444 Raleigh LaGrange Rd., Memphis, TN. Bro. Oscar Geeslin of Meadow Brook Baptist will officiate. Joe was born on May 9, 1943, in Memphis, TN. He attended Frazier High School in the '50s. Joe was a machinist in the beverage industry for approximately 30 years. He attended Meadow Brook Baptist Church and he enjoyed outdoor hobbies such as scuba diving, boating, fishing, hunting, camping, and motorcycle riding. Joe was a member of the Shriners Hospital Motorcycle Corps, where he served as captain at one point. He held the Shriners Hospital close to his heart and volunteered for them by driving children to the burn center for treatment. Joe was also a Mason and once spent a year serving as president of the Olive Branch Shrine Club. He loved to travel and enjoyed using his pilot's license to fly his small aircraft to different places. Joe was preceded in death by his mother, Tommie Sue Turnage; father, Joseph Monroe Newman; and bonus son, Scott Blevins. Joe is survived by his significant other of 49 years, Jeanette Blevins of Byhalia; daughter, Dorrie Minor (Robert) of Olive Branch, MS; sons, Daryel Newman of Iuka, MS, Mike Newman (Rose) of Las Vegas, NV; bonus son, Michael Blevins (Cecilia) of Havre de Grace, MD; sister, Martha Butler (Larry) of Cordova, TN; granddaughter, Haley Thomas Evans (Dalton) of Baltimore, MD; and grandson, Nick Thomas of Hernando, MS. In lieu of traditional flowers, donations may be made in Joe Newman's name to the Shriners Hospital for Children, specifically to the burn unit. (https://donate.shrinerschildrens.org/give/716571/#!/donation/checkout?c_src=shrinerschildrens&c_src2=main-nav). Online condolences may be left on his tribute wall at www.colemanfuneralhomeob.com.