Beulah McDonald (98) of Effingham

Beulah McDonald, 98, of Effingham, IL, passed away at 9:48 a.m. on Monday, September 27, 2021 at HSHS St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital in Effingham.

Funeral services will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, October 1, 2021 at Johnson Funeral Home in Effingham. Burial will be in Oak Ridge Cemetery in Effingham. Visitation will be held from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Friday at the funeral home. Please wear a mask for all services and practice social distancing guidelines.

Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society or the Centenary United Methodist Church. Online condolences may be shared by clicking here. 

Beulah was born February 12, 1923 the daughter of James and Ethel (Croft) Green. She attended Effingham High School and graduated in 1941. Upon graduation she began working as a telephone operator at the phone company in Effingham. On October 10, 1942, she married Robert Henry Jaycox in Austin, TX. After WWII they lived in Effingham prior to moving to the Gary, Indiana area in 1947 where he worked for the American Bridge Company until his death June 6, 1949. Two daughters were born of this union, Pamela (Doug) Smith and Candace Goodrich.

Upon returning to Effingham, Beulah went to beautician school in Decatur and opened the Sue-Ann Beauty Salon in her home on Richland Street. She was a beautician for many years and in 1959 she married Robert H. McDonald. They had 3 sons, David Arthur (deceased), Dennis Edward (Petra), and Daniel James (Brigid). After his death in 1968, she began working for the Holiday Inn of Effingham and later Bob Ambuehl at United Van Lines. She was a bowler for many years, and she loved to play bridge, participating in many clubs. She was a lifelong member of the Centenary United Methodist Church in Effingham and of the Order of Eastern Star Chapter 110.

Surviving are her children, Dennis, Daniel, Pam Smith, Candace Goodrich and her grandchildren Matt, Alex (Tanara), Dakota, Derek (Tiffany), Maggie, Molly Luchtefeld (Taylor), Jacqui McDonald, and Lucas Hemrich (Kristina) and many great grandchildren, Benjamin, Isabella, Charlotte and Elliott McDonald; Jaxson and Dawson Esker and Melee McDonald; and Keegan, Kiara, Talon and Bryce Hemrich, Grant Luchtefeld, and Ella McDonald.

Preceding her in death were her husbands; two sons, David McDonald and Robert Jaycox Jr; mother and father, James and Ethel Croft Green, and brother and sister, Cecil Green and Dorothy Ball.