Everywhere Bev Harmon Dellinger went, she made friends. She loved to laugh and brought her wicked sense of humor to everything she did. Though she was an introvert who often struggled with social anxiety, it didn’t stop people from gravitating to her, her whole life, seeking her warmth, generosity, kindness and consoul.
With a sharp mind and even sharper tongue, a person always knew where they stood with her. Honest, fair, and loyal, if a person was lucky enough to have her in their corner, they knew it. She could be counted on and she always sought out ways to be helpful.
She had so many friends: from James Wood High School, where she graduated in 1966; from her work in accounting and administrative assistance, as well as local and state government; from the other places she lived: Hagerstown, MD, Fredericksburg, VA, Indiana and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; and right down to the street where she grew up and died on. She was especially close with her cousins, Gay McDonald, Darlene Robinson, Eddie Harmon, Judy and Ray Barton, and Ricky and Barbara Combs (all of Winchester, VA) with whom she always shared a special connection that lasted all their lifetimes.
Fearlessly, she chased her dreams and made her life her own, admitting to her mistakes and missteps, while always trying her very best to be her very best.
She had an inner strength that got her through raising 2 spirited kids on her own, in a little house perched on top of a windy mountain, with a wood stove for heat and a narrow gravel road that went straight up to the sky. She kept her children (and her home) clean and fed and warm, with only the support of her parents to help her through icy cold winters and the long months that stretched between the monthly paycheck that she earned working at the DMV.
That inner strength got her through a lifetime of painful disappointments, obstacles, challenges and losses. Right up to her last breath, she kept to herself how horribly she was suffering, rarely complaining, while still continuing to do and be for those around her.
Above all else in this world, she treasured her family: her father Melvin Jim Harmon (who passed in 1992), her mother, Flossie Mae Butts, (2003), her brother Jim Harmon (2013), and sister Melody Harmon (of Winchester, VA), their son, Matthew Harmon (of Middletown, VA), his wife, Renee Harmon and their children, Elijah and Daniella Harmon.
Truly, the loves of her life were her children, Mark and Laura Cave (of Gore, VA), and Heather and Jim Duncan (of Winchester, VA), and her grandchildren: Taylor Cave (of Gore, VA), Gavin and Angela Cave (of Quantico Marine Base, VA), and Jesse Duncan (of Winchester, VA), Brad (& Ashley) Duncan (of Louisa, VA), Jeremy (& Sarah) Duncan (of Mansfield, MO), as well as her (step) great-grandchildren, Josiah Duncan (of Louisa, VA) and Isaiah, Seth, Levi, Laura Belle, Micah and Joshua Duncan (of Mansfield, MO).
A celebration of her life will be held at Omps Funeral Home (Amherst Chapel, Winchester, VA) on March 11, 2023 at 2pm.