Josefa Chism

Josefa Chism, age 89 of Coker, passed away Wednesday, March 6, 2019. Funeral services will be Saturday, March 9, 2019 at 12:00 p.m. at Buhl Baptist Church with Rev. Alford Banks officiating. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the church. Burial will follow at Tuscaloosa Memorial Park. Mrs. Chism was preceded in death by her husband, John P. Chism, Jr.; parents, Virgil and Willie Mae Preston Dean; and sister-in-law, Rita Dean. She is survived by her daughters, Connie Cherry (David) of Coker and Ann Jernigan (Paul) of Mobile; brother, Pratt Dean of Birmingham; grandchildren, Kimberly Moyer (Jamie) of Coker, Ben Jernigan of Mobile, Stephen Jernigan (Megan) of Nashville, TN, Peter Jernigan (Lauren Ashley) of Cincinnati, OH; and great-grandson, Parker Moyer. Josefa Dean Chism was born August 21, 1929, and spent her early life in Ozark, AL. She attended Troy State Teachers’ College and was a graduate of the University of Alabama, where she earned two masters’ degrees. She married John Chism on June 11, 1950, and they had been married almost sixty years when he passed away in 2010. She loved her family roles as wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She also had successive careers as a teacher and a social worker. After her retirement she became an artist and served as a volunteer art teacher for over twenty years. She was active in her church, Buhl Baptist, as long as her health permitted. Pallbearers will be Ben Jernigan, Peter Jernigan, Stephen Jernigan, Jamie Moyer, Robb Burns, and Paul Skelton. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Hospice of West Alabama or Gideon’s International.