Beverly Jean Holmes

Beverly Jean (Johnston) Holmes passed away peacefully in her sleep on Friday, June 28, 2024, in Plano, TX. She was 91 years old. She was born on September 15, 1932, in Watsonville, CA to Everett and Juanita (Lynn) Johnston.

Beverly grew up in El Reno, Ok and was an only child. Prior to moving to El Reno, Beverly and her parents lived in Childress, TX for several years. During that time, Beverly made numerous lifelong friends who she was still in touch with as recently as just a few months ago. Beverly graduated from El Reno High School in 1951 and was the Valedictorian of her class. Soon after graduation, the bright lights of New York called and she left Oklahoma to attend Barnard College where she graduated in 1955 with a Bachelor’s Degree in History.

She would later further her education attending Texas Woman’s University where she received a Master’s Degree in Library Science. She worked as a librarian at several universities in the Dallas area. Most notably, SMU and El Centro College where she was the Head Reference Librarian when she retired in 1994.

Beverly and Robert C. Holmes, Sr. married and had one son, Robert “Bob” C. Holmes, Jr. They would later divorce with Beverly remaining in the home they purchased in Farmers Branch in 1967, where she has called home ever since.

It’s no surprise that Beverly’s love of the arts started during her college years in New York. For many years, she was a season ticket holder of various theaters in the Dallas area, the Kalita Humphreys Theater, Dallas Theater Center, Addison Water Tower Theatre and Dallas Summer Musicals. She shared her love of theater with her family taking all three of her grandsons to the Dallas Children’s Theater to see some of their first live performances, The Stinky Cheeseman and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn are some of the most memorable.

Beverly’s extensive education in history and library science not only allowed her to have a long and successful career as a librarian, but also allowed her to enjoy a lifelong love of genealogy where she made numerous trips with many friends to the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City, UT, a world-renowned facility known for its massive genealogy archives. During her numerous trips to Utah, she was able to trace her own family history as far back as 1776, to the first American colonies making her eligible to be a member of the Colonial Dames of America, something she was very proud of. She was also a very active member of the Daughters of the American Revolution for many years.

Beverly was also very active in the North Dallas Woman’s Club and the Farmers Branch Woman’s Club. She was also a very active tennis player and played with the same group of ladies at Brookhaven Country Club well into her seventies. She enjoyed many monthly birthday gatherings with friends at the Chocolate Angel in Richardson.

Beverly loved to travel and has hundreds of mementos from numerous countries all across the world, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Egypt, France, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Mexico, Panama, Taiwan, Thailand, and the United Kingdom. There were numerous destinations within the U.S. that she enjoyed as well, Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada, New York, Tennessee and Utah, just to name a few.

Beverly was a member of Chapel Hill United Methodist Church in Farmers Branch for many years where she enjoyed serving on numerous committees. Most recently she was an active member of the Prayer Committee and the Worship Committee. She made many great memories with her family attending the Christmas Eve service together at Chapel Hill for the past 20 years.

Beverly was preceded in death by her parents, Everett and Juanita (Lynn) Johnston. She is survived by her only son Bob Holmes and wife Michelle of Farmers Branch, three grandsons Trey McKesson of Midlothian, Cade Holmes and wife Julie of Rowlett and Cody Holmes of Dallas; three great- grandchildren Karleigh McKesson, Henry Holmes and Harper Holmes.

A celebration of life will be held at Chapel Hill United Methodist Church in Farmers Branch on Wednesday, July 17 at 2 p.m. Beverly will be buried alongside her parents in a private service in El Reno, OK.

If so moved, please consider making a donation in Beverly’s memory to Chapel Hill United Methodist Church and their efforts to minister to those who are homebound.