Duetta Edwards

Shortly after they were married, Duetta and Jim built a house 8 miles south of Salem on land purchased from Jim’s grandfather. They lived in this home for almost 62 years.

Duetta’s life centered around family, church, and community. She served at Pleasant Valley Baptist Church for decades as the choir director, pianist, organist, and Women’s Sunday School teacher. She accompanied the Edwards Trio. She played the piano at numerous funerals over the years.

She is known in the Dent Co area for her cookbook, Dining With Duetta, which came out of her many years of writing a recipe column for the Salem News. She was involved in 4-H and the Women’ Extension Club. She was a music teacher and gave piano lessons to many students.

She was a steadfast partner in the Family Farm as record keeper and hay raker. She gardened and canned and very much took pride in caring for her yard.

After she raised her family, she traveled the world – Europe, the Holy Lands, England, parts of the US, along with many trips to Hawaii to see her daughter and grandchildren.

She followed her grandchildren’s events on the computer as much as she could whether it was baseball, gymnastics, cross country, track and field or broadcasting.

Duetta was wife, sister, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, friend, and teacher. She will be deeply missed.

Duetta was preceded in death by her parents Dewey and Bernice Knier; 3 sisters, Pauline Carrier, Vinita Murrell, and Nadine Smith.

Duetta is survived by her husband of 65 years, Jimmy Edwards, her sister, Martha Fortner (Roy) of Lee’s Summit, her son Barry Edwards (Kathryn) of Warsaw, MO, her daughter Sherry McGlaughlin (John) of Olathe, KS and  her daughter Tara Qalo (Israel) of Kapolei, HI, 12 grandchildren, Spencer Edwards, Myles Edwards (Lindsey), Johnna O’Bryan (Devan), Micah McGlaughlin, Elisah Qalo, Bethany Ewing (Cody), Shiloh Allen (Chris), Shekinah Davis (Chandler), Destiny Qalo, Shepherd Qalo (Kahrie), Joshua Qalo, Nathanael Qalo., and 9 great grandchildren.

A Memorial Service will be held at Pleasant Valley Baptist Church Saturday, May 30 at 11AM. Visitation will precede the service at 10AM.