Lola Beaty

1923 - 2025

Lola Beaty, age 101, passed away on Tuesday, August 26, 2025 at Adair Village in Clinton, Missouri.

Lola Irene (Polzin) Beaty was born on November 24, 1923 to Alfred Albert Frederick (Shorty) and Mary Etta (Rector) Polzin in Chilhowee, Missouri. Lola grew up during the Great Depression in Chilhowee. Upon graduating High School in 1941 she moved to Kansas City where she worked for Montgomery Ward. On March 17, 1944 she married Joseph Vance (Joe) Beaty upon his completion of naval flight school. They moved to California and later to Washington State. After the end of WWII they returned to the family farm in the Norris community.

She spent many years on the farm raising the kids, cooking large meals to feed hay crews or any extras that just happened to show up at mealtime. And if you came by in the afternoon there was almost always cookies in the cookie jar or a fresh loaf of bread hot out of the oven. She enjoyed gardening and her rose garden. She was especially proud of her hybrid tea roses.

A lot of time was spent with family and friends going to the lake, camping, boating and fishing. Bar-B-Ques with family and friends were frequent and lots of weekend evenings were spent playing cards with family and friends. She and Joe enjoyed dancing and bowling. They set up hummingbird and other bird feeders in the backyard and enjoyed watching the birds over morning coffee.

Lola worked for a time at the High School cafeteria and later in the jewelry department at Wal-Mart. In the early 2000's she left the farm and moved into Clinton. The bird feeders went along.

Conversations with her children often included reports on when the hummingbirds had returned, if there were wrens in the wren house or what new birds had visited the feeders along with quail, squirrels, deer and raccoons.

In 2023 she enjoyed a large celebration for her 100th birthday. She was very surprised by the number of people that came to celebrate the day.

Lola was preceded in death by her parents, Shorty and Mary Polzin, her sister Lucille (Don) Shroder, her brothers, Larry Dale and Robert Lee Polzin, her husband Joe Beaty and infant son Stanley Dale.

She is survived by her son Joseph Michael (Mike) Beaty, her daughters, Patricia Beaty (Mike Moore) and Peggy Jo (John) DeLuke. She is also survived by 6 grandsons; Matthew (Kim) Beaty, Chad (Michelle Jones) Beaty, Todd (Courtney Turner) Beaty, Jess Beaty, Eric DeLuke, Logan DeLuke, 4 great granddaughters, Chelsie Beaty, Lacy Beaty, Miranda Beaty, Paige McNabb and 3 great grandsons, Bannon, Max and Turner Beaty, along with several nephews, nieces and cousins.

A Celebration of Life was held October 25, 2025 at the First Presbyterian Church, Clinton with Rev. Mary Anna Townsend officiating. Special music included "Jealous of the Angels, How Great Thou Art, I Can Only Imagine and Precious Memories." Private family inurnment followed in Carpenter Cemetery, Chilhowee, MO.

Services were under the direction of Vansant-Mills Funeral Home of Clinton, MO.