Billie Elizabeth (Beth) Aiken Dade

Beth peacefully passed from this life on March 4, 2026, at the age of 92 in Artesia, New Mexico, and went to be with the Lord, her husband Larry, son Michael, and daughter Donna.

Born on July 26, 1933, in Whitesboro, Texas, she was the eighth child of Cordelia and Charles Aiken. One of eight siblings, Beth was a majorette in high school and worked in a café where she met her future husband, Larry Dade, who was serving in the Air Force at Sheppard Air Force Base. They married in November 1950, just before her high school graduation. Their first daughter, Sandra, was born before Larry’s discharge, after which the family moved to Midland, Texas, where their second daughter, Donna, was born. In June 1958 they settled in Artesia, New Mexico, where Beth would live for the rest of her life. Two more children, Randy and Michael, completed the family.

Beth was active in the Pythian Sisters in Midland and later became a dedicated member and officer of the Beta Sigma Phi sorority in Artesia. She cherished her sorority sisters and took part in their social and charitable endeavors. Her working life began at Joe Solt Well Service, included helping to open Gibson’s in Carlsbad, and concluded with a 26-year career at State Farm, from which she retired in July 1995. She especially loved greeting customers and building relationships with them and their families. Warm, generous, and compassionate, Beth formed lifelong friendships wherever she went and seemed to know everyone in Artesia. Her home was a welcoming place always filled with family and friends who stopped by for coffee, conversation, and companionship.

A longtime member of West Main Baptist Church, she assisted for many years with the mailing of the church newsletter. She found joy in gardening, camping and visiting the family cabin in the mountains, boating, skiing, occasional trips to the casino in Ruidoso, and simply being around people. She was preceded in death by her husband of 71 and a half years, Larry, her son Michael, and her daughter Donna. She is survived by her daughter Sandra McMahan and husband Bill, and her son Randy and wife Susan. Beth cherished her ten grandchildren—Jennifer Emery, Jason Grimes, Heather McMahan, Courtney McMahan Gomez, Molly McInnis, Lacey Romaka, Mark Dade, Aren Dade, Garet Dade, and Katelyn McGrath—and her twenty-four great-grandchildren. She will be deeply missed by all whose lives she touched with her kindness and friendship.