Johnny David Beckett, age 79, went to be with his Lord and Savior on Friday, September 17, 2021. He was born on May 12, 1942, in Paris, Arkansas, to the late Nolan Thomas and Emma Alice (Ramsey) Beckett.

His family lived close to Calico Mountain, and as a young child of 5, he would take his dog, a 22 rifle, and horse and go hunt squirrels and rabbits or gather up cattle to bring home from the mountain.

At the age of 17, he joined the Arkansas National Guard where he served and protected his country until 2002, when he retired with the rank of Chief Warrant Officer (CW4). Johnny graduated from Paris High School in 1961.

Johnny was a brick and block mason for 44 years with International Union of Bricklayers and Allie Craftworkers. He helped build the cooling towers at Arkansas Nuclear One and went on to be an instructor at Cass Job Corp Center in Ozark, Arkansas, from 1979 until his retirement in 2005. He was a lifetime union member. Johnny loved working with the kids in classes and helped them get jobs across the United States.

In 1962, he married Shirley Jean Ezell. They were married for 57 years until 2019 when she passed away.

Johnny moved his family to Driggs, Arkansas, from Wynne, Arkansas, in 1970 to help his father-in-law with the family farm. He never moved away. He loved being outside on the farm working with animals, old tractors, tinkering with machinery, cutting firewood, raking hay, and raising a garden.

Johnny was a dad, a father-in-law, a grandpa, and a great-grandpa. He loved his family and worked from before daylight to well after dark to make sure they had what they needed and wanted. He was of the Baptist faith and loved listening to gospel and old time country music. He worked with the Silver Spurs 4-H Club, Booneville 4-H Horse Club, and Westark Horse Show Association for many years helping kids with their horses and attending the horse shows.

Johnny was preceded in death by his wife Shirley; his parents, Nolan and Alice; his brothers, Thomas James, Hugh, and Bobby; and a sister, Martha (Beckett) Wilson and brother-in-law, Eddie Wilson.

Funeral service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 22nd at Brotherton Funeral Home Chapel in Paris, with Bro. Henry Jenkins officiating. Burial, with full military honors, will follow at Paint Rock Cemetery, located south of Paris, under the direction of Brotherton Brothers Funeral Home in Paris.

He leaves behind a daughter, Teresa Williamson and husband Rickey of Driggs; a grandson, Travis Williamson and wife Ashley of Driggs; two great-granddaughters, Brooklyn and Brynnley of Driggs; a sister, Linda Yarborough and Paul of Magazine; and several nieces, nephews, close friends, and his precious dogs, Pedro and Sally.

Pallbearers will be Marvin Moffet, Bill Young, Wes Powell, Brian Cooper, Allen Looney, and John Frank Webster.

Honorary pallbearers will be Charles Ramsey, Bill Berry, Kenneth Ezell, and Paul Yarborough.

The family will visit with friends from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home.

The Beckett family would like to thank the Oak Manor Nursing Staff, nurses, aides, administration, etc., whom he loved and enjoyed spending time with, and his home health therapists that provided care and assistance to him. He considered all of them his extended family.

To place an online tribute, please visit www.brothertonbrothersfuneralhomes.com.