Rev. Henry M. and Jacquelyn Moss Easley Rev. Henry M. and Mrs. Jacquelyn Moss Easley were married on August 31, 1957, in Washington, Georgia. They renewed their wedding vows on August 30, 2008, after fifty one years of happy and successful marriage. The renewal ceremony was performed by Rev. Gold Walton Jr. and was attended by scores of guests. They made the decision to reaffirm their marital vows because their children wanted them to have the dream wedding they were not able to have when they started out.

Their nearly 53 years of marriage have been blessed by God with eight wonderful and productive children: Henry Jr. (wife Wisteria), James (Mary), Sherry (Frank Charles), Carol (Darrell), Beverly (David Allen), David, John, and Kelvin (Contessa). Each of their four older children has completed a career in the Armed Forces of the United States and are retired senior noncommissioned officers working in their second careers. Additionally, their sixth child, David, is in the Air Force Reserves and is working in his civilian career as well. Their seventh child, John, completed 12 years of active duty and decided to go to work as a government contractor and is presently serving in Kuwait. The remaining two children are hardworking dedicated workers in the middle of their careers. God has blessed the Easleys with 18 beautiful and smart grandchildren and three wonderful great-grandchildren.

The Easleys maintain that they took their marriage vows seriously and they continue to do all they can to live up to their sacred vows to each other and to God. They credit prayer and keeping Christ at the center of their lives as important reasons why they have been able to endure the ups and downs of marriage for so many years. They state that you can not be a fault finder if you want to be married for a lifetime.

Throughout the years, Mrs. Easley has made the Easley house a home for her husband and children. She has taken seriously the scriptural verse, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” With eight children, Rev. Easley is grateful that God gave his wife a spirit to be a stay-at-home mom and devote her time to taking care of the family.

When asked their advice on raising strong and successful children, Mrs. Easley states that children must be taught to respect themselves and others and to be nice to other people. Children must be taught to tell the truth and to do what is right in God’s sight. She goes on to say that parents must have a firm hand and must not spare the rod. They must bring their children up in the fear and admonition of the Lord, so taking them to Sunday School and church is most important.

A U.S. Army veteran, Rev. Easley accepted the call into the ministry a year before he and Mrs. Easley were married. Throughout all the days of their children’s lives, he states that it has been very important to him to teach their children the difference between right and wrong, and to train up the children in the way they should go. He has always been aware that their children, especially his five sons, were watching him and Mrs. Easley, so he felt it very important for them to see him treating Mrs. Easley with love and kindness.

Mrs. Easley has worked to model virtues of a Christian woman for her daughters and sons and to demonstrate love and respect for her husband. It has been important for Rev. Easley that his children see him trying to live the life he is preaching and teaching about. He felt it necessary that he demonstrate the importance of working hard on his regular job, in the family garden, around their home, and in everything he attempted in order to teach his children a good work ethic. It was important that they learn early that if you want to have something, you have to work for it. Each of their children was required to do chores, inside and outside their home, by him and Mrs. Easley as they were growing up. They are not afraid to work hard. This has contributed greatly to their success in life.

Rev. and Mrs. Easley have been active in the Baptist Church all of their lives. Shady Grove is the home church of Rev. Easley and he is the pastor of St. John and Trinity Baptist Churches. Trinity is the home church of Mrs. Easley where she serves as First Lady, member of the Mothers Board, and Special Occasion (birthday and anniversary) Announcer.

What a blessing Rev. and Mrs. Easley have been to each other, to their children, their grandchildren, and to the Wilkes County community as a loving, caring, Christian couple and parents of wonderful and successful children and grandchildren. Indeed, they are “Unsung Heroes of Wilkes County.” We are blessed and so grateful to have them in our midst.