Miss Candace Elisabeth Boyd, age 31, passed away Sunday October 20, 2024, at UT Medical Center in Knoxville, TN surrounded with loving family singing “I’ll Fly Away”.
Candace “Darling Precious Candy Cane Movie Star” was born with a very rare metabolic disease LCHAD and suffered a massive stroke at seven months old. Despite a grim diagnosis, repeated hospitalizations and complications through the years, Candace has touched many lives, showing love, making people laugh and telling more people about Jesus than most ministers. Her testimony was powerful, and people listened. We hope she always knew how loved she was and how missed she is going to be by all her family and friends.
Candace loved music, especially The Gaithers and Southern gospel Music. Her favorite singers were Mark Lowry, Jason Crabb, and Wes Hampton. She was an excellent singer and sung in her local church often. She also had a great “6th sense” empathy for others, intuitively knowing when they were sad and offering them love, a smile and saying “Jesus loves you.”
She attended Caywood Elementary, Lexington Middle School, Lexington High school in Henderson Co TN, then Northside High School in Jackson, TN. She was involved in many school activities with her Special Needs class. She also sung the National Anthem and said the Pledge of Allegiance at the Special Olympics games in Jackson, TN and many Lexington civic activities. She never met a stranger. She loved Southern gospel concerts and travel in the mountains until her health declined this year.
Today, she is happy and healed! She is singing in the Heavenly Choir, running without any barriers for the first time, free of pain and needle scars. As we are hurting today, we are so happy to know Candace has been set free and is rejoicing with the angels.
She was preceded in death by her maternal grandmother Evelyn Mays Reeves, maternal grandfather Nelson Reeves Sr, maternal step-grandmother Billie Jean Reeves, and paternal grandmother Georgia Boyd.
She is survived by her mother, Reatha Reeves Tharp (Philip) of Knoxville, TN, father Joe Frank Boyd of Huntsville, AL, uncle Nelson (Angie) Reeves, Lexington, TN, 1st cousins Brooklyn (John Ross) Hudson , Alyssa Reeves and Allyson Reeves, cousins Greyde & Lyndie Hudson and Case Reeves, step-sister Ashley (Darren) Antle of Knoxville TN, step-nieces Scarlett and Jewel Antle and step-nephew Hunt Antle.
She is also survived by her Godmother Shirley Johnson of Parsons, TN and special caregiver, her cousins Alicia, Jeff and Dakota McDaniel.
Funeral services are scheduled for 2 PM, Sunday, October 27, 2024 at Darden Pentecostal Church in Darden, TN. Interment will follow in Darden Cemetery. The family will receive friends at Darden Pentecostal Church on Saturday, October 26, 2024 from 12 – 6 PM and on Sunday, 10 AM – 2 PM.
