Billie Jo (Bailey) Payne

“To know her is to love her, but forever, for nature made her what she is and never made another…” Woodbury High School 1951 yearbook

Billie Jo Bailey Payne passed away on Saturday, April 25, 2026 at Brickmont Assisted Living in Roswell, Georgia. She was born on March 16, 1933 in Woodbury, Tennessee to her parents Charley Bailey and Prudence Witty Bailey.

At the age of 18, Billie Jo moved to Nashville, Tennessee to attend Draughon’s Business College. After graduating, she met and married Joseph Anderson Payne III on March 16, 1956. They had 4 children.

Billie Jo was a long time member of the Church of Christ where for many years she taught Sunday School. She enjoyed politics and worked many days at the polls during elections. She was also a longtime Tennessee Volunteers fan much to her brother, Carmon’s dismay as he was a longtime Vanderbilt fan!

Billie Jo devoted the majority of her professional life to the R. F. Condra Company, where she formed genuine, personal connections with the tenants across the many properties she helped manage. She knew each resident by name and circumstance, and she carried their well being in her heart. It was not uncommon for her to quietly pay a tenant’s rent to spare them a late fee — something she considered an unnecessary hardship. Without fail, she was always repaid, a testament to the mutual trust she inspired. This simple, steadfast generosity reflected Billie Jo’s enduring faith in people. She lived with an open hand, a caring spirit, and a belief that kindness was never wasted.

Billie Jo was preceded in death by her parents, Charley and Prudence Witty Bailey, as well as her siblings Carmon Bailey, Clarence Bailey, Christine Bailey Thrower, Georgia Bailey Bryson, Elmus Bailey, Ed Wiley Bailey, and Charley Bailey, Jr. She was also preceded in death by her daughter in law, Kim Peda Payne.

She leaves behind a devoted family: her son, Joey Payne; her daughters, Laura Payne, Jenny Mangan (Tim), and Andrea Remke (Patrick). Billie Jo cherished her grandchildren—Tyler Mangan, Evan Mangan, Patrick Mangan (Lydia), Bailey Remke Lisowski (Dylan), William Remke, Mae Remke, Allison Payne, and Zachary Payne—each of whom brought her immense joy. Numerous nieces and nephews also survive her and hold her memory close.

Her family will receive friends Friday, June 12, 2026 from 10:00 to 10:45 a.m. Her funeral service will be held on Friday, June 12, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. in the Chapel of the Woodbury Funeral Home with interment after at Riverside Cemetery. Active pallbearers are Tyler, Evan and Patrick Mangan, William Remke, Zachary Payne, Kevin Bailey, Charlie Bailey, and Gary Bailey. Honorary pallbearers are Benton Lowe, Patrick Remke, and Tim Mangan.

In lieu of flowers or planting a tree, donations may be made to Tennessee Children's Home .

Woodbury Funeral Home, 615-563-2311 or to leave condolences and memories for her family, please visit www.woodburyfuneralhome.net 

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Billie Jo (Bailey) Payne, please visit our floral store.