Joetta Yarber Goodpaster

OWINGSVILLE - Joetta Yarber Goodpaster, 71, of Owingsville, died Thu night, April 19, 2012, at Central Baptist Hospital in Lexington. She was the wife of Emery Vernon Goodpaster, and the daughter of the late Cleveland and Amanda Lee Bailey Yarber of Olympia, Bath County. She spent her childhood in both Olympia and Ashland where her father worked as an agent for the C&O Railroad. She and her husband spent the first part of their careers as teachers in Kentucky and Cincinnati, OH before retiring to Owingsville where, for 19 years, they operated the Colonial Nursing Home. As the granddaughter of late State Representative and Railroad Commissioner Walter J. Bailey and his wife Fanny Snelling, and the niece of former Bath County Judge Executive Ray Bailey, who died January 30th, Joetta maintained a life-long active interest in politics at all levels, particularly state and local. She was the county chairman of Lt. Governor Daniel Mongiardo's gubernatorial campaign in 2010, and at the time of her death was collaborating with Representative Sanni Overly on legislation. Kentucky tourism, one of her major interests, led to her participation in Hal Rogers' South Eastern Kentucky Tourism Association, and she worked for years trying to get the state to designate US 60 - the Midland Trail as an historic highway to aid state and national tourism and historic preservation. She also worked at one time with the Gateway Area Development District. She was the treasurer of the Bath County Retired Teachers Association, a member of the Owingsville Woman's Club, the Bath County Democratic Woman's Club, and the Kendall Springs Church of Christ. Her interests included quality education, gardening, history, historic preservation, antiquing, and reading the daily paper's coverage of current events, political news, lifestyle, and editorials. She was a tireless advocate for children, the downtrodden, and the others unable to fight for themselves, but preferred working behind the scenes rather than in the spotlight. Besides her husband, she is survived by one son, Jerrell Goodpaster and his wife, Debbie, two aunts; Virginia Harris and Donna Jean Bailey, and several cousins. Funeral services held today, Tue at 2pm at the Richie Hunt Funeral Home with burial in the Owingsville Cemetery.