Kathleen McCloud Neal

EMORY, Va. Kathleen "Kay" McCloud Neal, 101, passed away on Saturday, April 11, 2015, at her home in Emory, Virginia. Born on March 29, 1914, on Hart's Creek in Logan County, West Virginia, Kathleen was the eldest child of her father, Garfield McCloud, and her mother, Belle Wallen McCloud. While growing up in a small house in the Island Creek Coal Company town of Monaville, West Virginia, Kay graduated from Monaville Elementary School and then graduated from Logan High School on May 25, 1934. Following high school, she went to school at the National Business College in Roanoke, Virginia from 1934 to 1936 where she met her future husband John Allen Neal from Tannersville, Virginia. After graduating, Kay returned to Logan, West Virginia to work for the Appalachian Power Company, while Allen went to work in Norton, Virginia for the F. B. Kline Coca-Cola Bottling Company from 1936 to 1940. They were married in Norfolk, Virginia on April 18, 1941. Shortly thereafter, Allen enlisted in the U.S. Army where he served with the Headquarters Battery of the 402nd Field Artillery Battalion of the 42nd Rainbow Infantry Division in Europe from 1944 to 1946. During that time, Kay returned to Logan, West Virginia to work for the War Rationing Board and then went with Allen's sisters, Helen and Elizabeth, to Richmond, Virginia where she got a job with the Richmond newspaper until he returned from the War. After the War, Kay and Allen lived in Richmond, Virginia, where he worked for the Bloomsburg and Yourdon Insurance Agency. Their daughter, Avis Kathleen "Kitty" Neal was born in Richmond, Virginia on July 25, 1947. Allen received his B.A. from Emory & Henry College in 1954 and his M.A. from Ohio State University in 1955. He became a United States Air Force historian, working at Wright Field of the Wright Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio from 1955 to 1958. Kay worked at Wright Field in the Tech Services Division. Their son, John Allen "Jay" Neal, III, was born in Dayton, Ohio on August 27, 1957. In 1958, Allen and Kay moved to Emory, Virginia, where Allen was a Professor of History at Emory & Henry College from 1958 until his retirement in 1977. Kay graduated from Emory & Henry College on May 31, 1964. After graduation, she received her teaching certificate and taught seventh grade at Glade Spring Elementary School in Glade Spring, Virginia, until her retirement in 1977. She was a member of the Emory United Methodist Church. In addition to her parents, Kay was preceded in death by her husband, John Allen Neal; her two sisters, Rosaleen McCloud "Rosie" Maynard and Avis McCloud; and her two brothers, James Howard "Jimmy" McCloud and Theodore "Ted" McCloud. She is survived by her daughter, Avis Kathleen "Kitty" Neal Cox and Kitty's husband, James David Cox of Glade Spring, Virgina; her son, Dr. John Allen "Jay" Neal, III, of Emory, Virginia; her grandchildren, David Allen Cox and wife Kim Cox of Bristol, Virginia, Dr. Paul Andrew "Andy" Cox and wife Valerie Cox of Abingdon, Virginia, Virginia Kathleen "Kathy" Cox of Marion, Virginia; and five great grandchildren, McCloud Cox, Emma Cox, Callee Cox, Neal Cox, and Trent Cox. Graveside services will be held at 1 p.m. Wednesday, April 15, 2015, at the family cemetery in Tannersville, Virginia with Dr. Charles W. Starks and Rev. David Jackson officiating. Honorary pallbearers will be John Neal, David Cox, Allen Cox, and Andy Cox. The family would like to recognize and express their gratitude for the excellent care provided to Kay in her final years by Ms. Eva Eastridge of the Home Nursing Service of Southwest Virginia. Memorial contributions may be made to Emory & Henry College in Emory, Virginia. Those wishing to share memories and express sympathy online may do so by visiting www.farrisfuneralservice.com. The family of Kathleen "Kay" McCloud Neal is being cared for by Farris Funeral Service and Crematory, 427 East Main Street, Abingdon, VA 24210 (276-623-2700).