Beca Jane Mitchell, beloved wife and “True North” of Dr. Philip Mitchell, died at home the evening of July 16th in the arms of her husband with her son Evan by her side, surrounded by love and at peace after a 9 year battle with frontotemporal dementia. She was born on June 23rd, 1954 in Jacksonville, Florida to John Rodman Hughes and Josephine Anderson Hughes, originally of Harlan, Kentucky. She and her family followed her father in his career with Sinclair Oil, living in Wyoming and Mississippi, before moving overseas to Germany and then Belgium, learning German and then French. Later they returned to Daytona Beach, Florida before finally settling in Raleigh, NC.
Beca deeply loved her family, especially her sons, her horse Pegasus and she always had a loyal dog by her side. She had an abiding interest in different cultures and truly never met a stranger. She had many lifelong friends with diverse backgrounds and an amazing ability to bring people together, accepting them as family. She loved nature and all of God’s creation and strongly believed in protecting the earth. She was happiest outside, exploring the mountains and beaches and all points in between, working in her garden, or swimming in the nearest body of water (pond, stream, quarry, ocean). She was committed to helping those in need; most important to her was the work she did with Helping Horse in Raleigh and Appalachian Therapeutic Riding Center in Burnsville, passionately helping children with disabilities make a healing connection with horses. Above all else she held her love for God. She was a lifelong member of the Episcopal Church, and her deep faith guided her dedication to helping others.
Beca’s approach to life was full engagement. She ignored trivial boundaries and never worried about what others might think of her. When asked about how they became so close, her friends said, “Beca loved life more than anyone I have ever known,” “She was interested in you and who you were, what your story was,” “She was my role model for being a strong woman,” and “She helped me learn to be the person I wanted to be.” Her son Drew observed, “She always knew who she was, which is pretty unusual.” Lastly, her sister Gladice noted, “She grabbed hold of adventures of all sizes with all of her might and propelled herself into them with such energy, passion and joy that anyone witnessing could not help but be awestruck. ”
In 2012 she fell in love with Philip Mitchell, the love of her life. He proposed to her on a rocky outcrop overlooking St. Columba’s Bay on the Isle of Iona, Scotland. They were married on December 21st, 2013, under the care of the Celo Friends Meeting. She moved to Burnsville to share the rest of her life with her Beloved.
Unfortunately, by the end of their first year of marriage she began to show the early signs of frontotemporal dementia. But…love is deep, and love is special. So, the two of them resolved to embark on a journey of love. Though it was not the journey they expected, they were determined to persevere together. Through grief and sadness at the loss of the life they had planned, they found their love and commitment only grew and deepened as they embraced the life they faced together. At night Philip read to her from her book of Celtic prayers from Iona Abbey. She simply wanted to be near him. She lost her ability to speak, but her last words to her Beloved husband Philip were, “l love you.” She remained awake, alert and fully engaged to the best of her ability until the end of her precious life, cherishing every moment.
We know that this is not the usual way to write an obituary, but Beca and Philip have always had a desire to share their love as a way to honor the love that God blessed upon them. And it is true.
Bidden or not bidden, God is present.
Beca is survived by her Beloved husband, Dr. Philip Mitchell of Burnsville; sons: Evan Lamb
(Michelle) of Franklinton, NC and Drew Lamb of Asheville, NC; stepsons: Aaron
Mitchell (Grace) of New York City, Andrew Mitchell of Los Angeles, CA and Evan Mitchell (Claire) of Chapel Hill, NC; sister, Gladice Hughesova (Dusan) of Liberec, Czech Republic; brothers: Ben Hughes (Jane) of Raleigh, NC and Rod Hughes (Melinda) of Cary, NC; grandchildren: Cody Everest, Vivian Chen-Mitchell, Lily Chen-Mitchell and Patrick Mitchell Davis; brothers-in-law: John and Andrew Mitchell (Kim); sisters-in-law: Mary Anne Brown (Vernon) and Elizabeth Carnes (Timothy). Additionally, she has many nieces and nephews that she loved dearly.
Her husband Philip wishes to thank the many individuals who have provided so much support and care during this long illness. In particular, the medical staff and entire staff of Mountain Community Health Partnership and Celo Health Center for taking care of his patients and allowing him to be home with Beca and focus only on taking care of her over the past 9 months. Special thanks to the CNAs and nurses of Compassionate Care Hospice who have provided gentle loving care to Beca, to the Celo Friends Meeting which has provided so much support over the years, including piling into their bedroom to sing hymns and Beatle songs making Beca so happy, and to Victor Mansfield, the priest at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Burnsville who faithfully brought communion and joy to Beca each week. Lastly, Philip would like to express his heartfelt gratitude to Melody Hughes, who provided loving and amazing care for Beca for the past 5 years. He is also forever grateful to all of his patients who prayed for them and put Beca on the prayer list at their churches.
A service to celebrate her life and faith will be held at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 372 Reservoir Rd. Burnsville on Sunday, July 28 th at 1 pm.
Memorial Service and Interment of ashes will be at Christ Episcopal Church on Capitol Square, 120 East Edenton St., Raleigh, NC on Saturday, August 3rd at 1 pm
In lieu of flowers, please consider contributing to one of the following in Beca’s honor:
Appalachian Therapeutic Riding Center, 299 Riding Center Rd, Burnsville, NC. Helping Horse Therapeutic Riding Program, 12200 Shooting Club Rd, Raleigh, NC 27613.
To send online condolences, please visit our website at www.yanceyfuneralservices.com
