Jesse Ray Birchfield

Master Sgt. Jesse Ray Birchfield, age 53, of Mechanicsville, Md., formerly of Marion, passed away Friday, Jan. 26, 2007 at John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Md. A native of McDowell County, Jesse was born Sept. 18, 1953 and was a son of Della Hall Birchfield of Marion and the late Samuel Cass Birchfield. Jesse was a former member of Zion Hill Baptist Church in Marion but later joined North Cove Baptist Church. He was actively serving in the U.S. Air Force as the Air National Guard Civil Engineering Training Manager at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. Left to cherish Jesse's memory are his wife, Teresa Holder Birchfield of the home; his mother, Della Hall Birchfield of Marion; two children Stephanie Layne Birchfield of the home and Scotty Ray Birchfield and wife, Jessica, of Waldorf, Md.; one sister, Willane Greene of Marion and two grandchildren, Aaron Scott Birchfield and Alison Nicole Birchfield. A funeral service will be held Saturday, Feb. 3, 2007 at 2 p.m. at North Cove Baptist Church with Revs. Claude Gouge and Bruce Ward officiating. The family will receive friends on Friday, Feb. 2, 2007 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Westmoreland Funeral Home. Interment will be in North Cove Baptist Church Cemetery with full military honors being provided by the U.S. Air Force from Pope Air Force Base. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Lewis Rathburn Center, 121 Sherwood Road, Asheville, N.C. 28803. An online register is available under OBITUARIES at www.westmorelandfuneralhome.com.