Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, at McKibben and Guinn Funeral Service in Grenada for Patricia J. “Trish” Hightower, 87, who went to be with the Lord on Thursday, Feb. 1. Burial will follow in Woodlawn Memorial Park. The family will receive friends from 1 p.m. until service time on Friday, Feb. 9, at McKibben and Guinn.
Trish was born on July 20, 1936, in Memphis, Tenn., the daughter of S.R “Gus” and Eunice Johnston. She graduated from East High School in Memphis, Tenn., and received a bachelor’s degree from Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tenn. While in Nashville, she met her husband, George D. Hightower, and was married in 1958. Her husband’s career led the family to East Tennessee; Jackson, Miss.; and Memphis Tenn., where she worked as a buyer in the purchasing department at the Memphis Board of Education. Her husband went into business as a petroleum marketer, which ultimately led them to move to Grenada, where they lived for 42 years, and where she worked as office manager for Hightower Oil Company.
During her years in Grenada, she was an active member of Southside Church of Christ, where she was a pre-school Sunday school teacher and served in the women’s ministry. She served for many years on the community Women’s Bible Study team, which held Bible classes for female inmates at the Grenada County Jail. She was also active in the community, serving as founding chairman and tutor for the Grenada League for Adult Development, Grenada’s adult literacy program. She was a past member of the Business and Professional Women’s Club, and member and past president of the New Century Club. She served on the Holmes Community College Workforce Council, the HCC Grenada Arts Council, and the Grenada Planning and Zoning Commission. She received the Exchange Club’s “Book of Golden Deeds” Award, the Red Rose Award from Delta Kappa Gamma, the Governor’s Office Literacy Award of Excellence, and was a Grenada Rotary Club Paul Harris Fellow.
Trish was an avid reader. She enjoyed traveling to a variety of destinations, but especially loved visiting New Orleans, La., and Destin, Fla. She loved spending time with family and local friends, as well as gatherings of friends from her high school and college days. She adopted her husband’s love for all things Ole Miss and attended countless Ole Miss football games throughout the years. She was a beloved wife, mother, sister and friend. Her commitment to Christ was of utmost importance in her life.
Survivors include, her husband of 65 years, George D. Hightower; her daughter, Dianne Hightower of Southaven; her son, David Hightower of St. Louis, Mo.; her brother, Stanley R. Johnston of Memphis, Tenn.; and her sister-in-law, Ann Hightower of Cordova, Tenn.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be directed to Southside Church of Christ or to the Grenada League for Adult Development, P.O. Box 533, Grenada, MS 38902.
Online condolences can be expressed to the family at www.mckibbenandguinn.com
McKibben and Guinn Funeral Service in Grenada is in charge of arrangements.
