Betty Jo Buice

Betty Jo Buice (née Yearwood) 60 of Dawsonville, GA passed away with her loving family by her side. Betty Jo was born in Cumming, GA to the late Jasper Perry Yearwood, Jr. and Dorothy Kate Yearwood (née Pitts).

Betty is survived by her loving husband of 43 years, Mike Buice; daughters and sons in-law, Katie & Brandon Waters, Emily & Michael Lane; cherished and beloved granddaughter, Skylar; sisters and brother in-law, June Green, Patricia Yearwood, Linda & Phil Mays; brothers in-law and sisters in-law, Jeff & Peggy Buice, Paula & Bill Goddard, Stacey & Brian York; several nieces, nephews, extended family members and beloved friends.

Betty Jo was placed on horseback as an infant and inhaled the scent that would make her a horse girl for life. After her sister smacked the pony on the rear, Smokey Joe took off and they found her a few miles away, still on his back. Her first heart horse was a 2 ½ year old Palomino mare named Sugarfoot (Sugar), who lived to be 22 years old and taught her daughters to ride. She spent most of her youth on horseback, usually bareback before she could afford to buy a saddle. Near daily rides through South Forsyth with her best friend Lisa were among her favorite memories. She sometimes rode Sugar to school and would leave her to graze on the football field. Betty Jo was gifted with natural horsemanship, and her equine touch was a marvel to watch. 

Betty worshiped her parents and was a dutiful and faithful daughter through all phases of life. Her daddy was a revered member of the community and ran a garage, helping many people start businesses that operated in Forsyth County for many years. She loved to work on cars with her daddy, and they built her first car together from the junkyard. Betty and her mama were two of a kind. They were made from the same block and cherished the same things. Their faith in God was strong, and they valued family more than anything in the world. Betty was a faithful caregiver of her mother through her battle with Alzheimer’s and Dementia. Once Betty and Mike returned from the service, they lived across the pasture from her parents, surrounded by her sisters. The extended family moved to Dawson County together, otherwise she would have never left her parents. 

Betty started her career with AT&T in the late 1980’s, where she made lifelong friends that were dear to her. She worked on the same account, but her work was transferred to IBM and then Kyndryl. She retired after 38 years of service. She became a master of mainframe database management, but her biggest impact was on the people who were lucky enough to call her a colleague. 

Betty Jo loved her family more than anything in this world. She married the boy from down the street that used to bring her escaped turtles and puppies as children. She and Mike built a beautiful life together. An ever-dutiful wife, she was so proud of his service in the military. Together, they had treasured friendships, built many houses together (theirs, friends, and family’s), traveled, and later fell head over hooves for miniature show horses. They built a large community of friends in the show world and spent some of the best years of their lives in barn aisles all over the country living the horse show life of hurry-up-and-wait. The horses were addictive, the ribbons were fun, but it was those sacred moments of friendship that sustained them. Betty loved Mike fiercely, and cared for him intensely through his own health struggles the past few years. 

She cherished her daughters; they were her whole world. Betty talked to her girls multiple times a day; they were her best friends. She raised strong, independent women and taught them how to be a good friend. When they were young, Betty prioritized dinner together as a family, which was a feat working full time and sometimes opposite shifts from Mike. She was so proud of them, and of the lives they built and looked forward to their time together as a big family, which was frequent and joyful. 

Betty Jo lived a full life, but it was not complete until the arrival of her granddaughter, Skylar. The sun rose and set with that little girl, and Betty traded in every other title for her most sacred: Mama Jo. Words are inadequate to describe how much joy was shared since her arrival, and how much our hearts break that their time together was cut so very short. She will always be a guardian angel for her Sky, forever and always. She gave her second heart horse, Bentley, to Skylar. 

Until we meet again, mama. Ride on. 

Funeral services will be held 4:00 pm Sunday, February 16, 2025, in the chapel of Ingram Funeral Home with her first cousin Michael Holbrooks officiating. The family will receive friends prior to the service from 2:00 pm until 4:00 pm at Ingram Funeral Home, 210 Ingram Avenue, Cumming, GA 30040.