Lillian Irene (Dickens) Greer

Lillian Irene (Dickens) Greer, age 97 of Jamestown, passed away on Tuesday, May 16, 2023 at her home.

Graveside services will be held on Friday, May 19, 2023 at 11:00 am at the Storie Cemetery in Jamestown.

Lillian Irene Dickens was born in Berea, Kentucky on August 29, 1925. From there, she moved to Charleston, West Virginia. While there, she won the healthy baby contest at the county fair. She finally settled on a farm in Clinton County, Kentucky. She was home-schooled at first when she was six years old because of the walking distance to the nearest school. Her brother was of age the following year.

Their teacher rode a horse past their house, so it was arranged for them to ride horseback to school with their teacher. The teacher was unsure how to place her. She started in the first grade but was soon promoted to the second grade. In her school, the children brought whatever vegetables they could and the teacher cooked them on a pot-bellied stove for the classroom's lunch.

The family moved to the town of Albany, Kentucky when her daddy was elected circuit court clerk. Halfway through the fifth grade, she was moved into the sixth grade. After she completed the seventh grade, she skipped the eighth grade and entered high school. She graduated as salutatorian in 1941 at the age of 15. On her sixteenth birthday, she entered Bowling Green College of Commerce. At the end of the school year, before she returned home, she took a civil service test. She tested on Friday and on Monday, a letter was waiting on her asking her to report to Wright-Patterson Airforce Base in Dayton, Ohio to begin work. She was a government stenographer in the Legal Division, Contract Section. This was the summer of World War II after the attack at Pearl Harbor. After 15 months of work, she enrolled in business education at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky. She graduated in 1945 at the age of 19.

She married Zenith Manning Greer in 1952 and they had three children: Nyla Jane, Ryan Manning and Wade Alan. She taught general business and typing at Clarkrange High School for eight years and was guidance counselor at York Institute for twenty-one years. She spent a few years as part owner of the Jordan Motel and taught Adult Education. She also volunteered at the Jamestown Regional Medical Center.

Jennings Funeral Homes of Jamestown is in charge of services for Lillian Irene (Dickens) Greer of Jamestown.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Lillian Irene (Dickens) Greer, please visit our floral store.