Shirley Jean Neal Cassidy, 86, closed her eyes at Pikeville Medical Center on Saturday, December 30, 2023 and opened them for the first time in Heaven welcomed by her Lord and Savior. She was the oldest of four children born in Bristol, Tennessee to Robert and Bonnie Smith Thomason.
Shirley was a long time resident of Coeburn, Virginia. She worked at several different locations in the area eventually settling into retail management and retiring from Shoe Show in 1998. She was very active in her community and loved to help others. She was a long time member of the Coeburn Improvement Association and enjoyed attending MEOC Pace Program on Tuesdays to visit with her friends. She took great pride in her 6 children, 17 grandchildren, 31 great grandchildren and 9 great great grandchildren, never missing an opportunity to brag on them. Shirley enjoyed going out to lunch with her friends, taking shopping trips and working and dancing at The Lay's Hardware on Saturday nights until her health would no longer allow. She never wanted to miss a sporting event that any of her children were involved in. We would often joke, when the car moved, she was jumping in to go with us. It did not matter who was going or where they went, she wanted to go, too. Shirley attended Midway Church for many years and loved her church family.
Shirley was preceded in death by the father of her children, James Neal, her parents, one brother, Donald Thomason; one sister, Sue Feasor; one half sister, Janie Pierce and one grandson, Todd Kudirka.
She is survived by her 6 children and their spouses Gail and Mike Overbay, Lynne and Terry Nixon, Jamie and Frank Kudirka, Phyllis and Lucky Powers, Caroline and Jimmy Rose and Doug and Tina Neal, one brother, Bruce Thomason and wife Julie of Brookhaven, Pennsylvania and one half brother, David Thomason of Limestone, Tennessee. She is also survived by her grandchildren; great- grandchildren; great-great-grandchildren; several nieces and nephews, cousins, her church family and her friends from the CIA and MEOC PACE.
Pallbearers will be Eric Overbay, Jon-Todd Nixon, Aaron Neal, Jeremy Rose, Shawn Marshall, RJ Stanley, Chase Reece, Tevin Hopkins, Isaac Ratliff and Colton Brown.
Although our hearts are broken to lose such an amazing woman who was loved by so many, we have peace knowing that she was ready to meet her Jesus and we have the hope of seeing her again one day.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to donorschoose.org , Every Child Deserves to Play!, a project from Mrs. Mallory at Coeburn Primary School P.O. Box 1337 Coeburn, VA 24230.

Funeral services for Shirley Cassidy will be conducted at 7:00 P.M. Tuesday, January 2, 2024 at the Sturgill Funeral Home Chapel in Wise, VA with Pastor Carrol Childress and Stan Tate officiating. The Family will receive friends from 5:00 P.M. till time of services at 7:00 P.M. Tuesday at the Sturgill Funeral Home in Wise, VA. Graveside services will be held at 2:00 P.M. Wednesday, January 3, 2024 at Greenwood Acres Cemetery 436 Centre Ave NE Coeburn, VA 24230. Family and Friends will meet at 1:20 P.M. Wednesday at the Sturgill Funeral Home in Wise, VA to go to the cemetery in procession.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/shirley-jean-cassidy

Please visit www.sturgillfuneral.com to leave online condolences for the family.

Sturgill Funeral Home 1621 Norton Road SW Wise, VA 24293 is in charge of arrangements