Caroline Elizabeth Beach Barclay

Posted on October 18, 2023

Caroline Elizabeth Beach Barclay went home to be with the Lord and her husband, George, in the early hours of Oct. 13, 2023.

She was born to Leonard and Gertrude Beach in the Scanlon logging community of Taylor County on April 22, 1943.

She joined an older brother and sister, Joe and Meredith, and baby sister, June, came along a couple of years later.

Caroline shared many fond memories of growing up in rural Florida, and throughout her life she honored those early lessons learned about loving God and loving her neighbor.

She liked to tell stories of her Grandpa Hamilton hunting, fishing and growing vegetable gardens, always sharing their bounty with everyone in the community who had a need.

As she became an adult, she entered the workforce in the banking industry. Throughout her life, Caroline mastered many skills and worked in various different occupations including office manager of several different organizations.

She also traveled throughout the southeast working for the financial risk reduction business Telecheck when they first started. She worked for 10 years at Buckeye Cellulose and was the owner of Barclay’s Restaurant in Perry.

Caroline’s favorite occupation of all was being a mother and grandmother, and she was able to fulfill her lifelong dream of being a foster parent with her husband, George Barclay.

Through the years that they served the community as foster parents, more than 100 children called their house a home and found love, discipline and good old southern cooking.

Caroline is predeceased in death by” her parents, Joseph Leonard Beach, Sr. and Gertrude Hamilton Beach; her brother, Joseph Leonard Beach Jr.; her sister, Violet June Beach Hendry; and her beloved husband, George Allen Barclay.

She is survived by: her sister, Meredith Beach Parker; six daughters, Robin Gray Isman, Lori Gray Freeman, Melissa Barclay Kelm, Dana Barclay Davis, Brandy Marie Barclay and Kristina JoLee Barclay; 11 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

In keeping with her wishes, a graveside service was held Monday, Oct. 16, at Barclay Cemetery in Greenville, conducted by Pastor Jeremy Gray.

Friends and loved ones joined the family after the service for food and fellowship at Westside Baptist Church Fellowship Hall in Perry.