Our Staff

Jody is a lifelong resident of Brownsville and attended Haywood County Schools. Jody graduated from John A. Gupton College of Mortuary Science of Nashville in 1990. Jody is married to Jeanna Roberts Lea of Brownsville and has 3 children, J.T. Lea Jr., Miller Lea, and Avery Bradford Lea.

In 2009, Jody fulfilled his dream of owning his own funeral home with the help of his brother Chris Lea and good friend, Elliott Simmons.

Jody is a member of New Vision Baptist Church. He has served  with the The Brownsville Business Association, as well as an Ambassador for the Chamber of Commerce.  He served as the West Director of the Tennessee Funeral Directors Association & The Haywood County Leadership Board of Trustees and was a graduate of the 2011 Leadership Class. Jody was chosen as the 2011 Ambassador of the Year.  Jody is currently the chairman of the Haywood County Election Commission.  

He loves spending time at the Tennessee River with his family.  He is an avid fan of the  University of Tennessee sports.  He loves the outdoors and enjoys hunting and fishing as well. 

Elliott was born and raised in Brownsville, TN. A graduate of Haywood High School and Northwest Mississippi College with a degree in Mortuary Science. Elliott has been in the funeral business for 20+ years. 

Elliott’s desire to have a career in the funeral business started while he was in high school working for Brownsville-Bells Funeral Homes.

 Elliott and his wife, Lisa have two children, Bryse & Brenna Carlton, both who are attending Mississippi State University. 

Serving the people of Haywood, Crockett and surrounding counties in their time of need is a great honor for Elliott. 

Chris was born and raised in Brownsville. He has two children, Emma, and Joseph. Chris is very active in the community and has proudly served on many boards throughout the city and county.  Some include the Haywood County Commission, Budget Committee, Public Safety and Jail Committee, Carl Perkins Advisory Board of Directors, Haywood Park Hospital Board of Trustees, and the Rotary Club. He is a member of New Vision Baptist Church.

Chris proudly joins Elliott, Jody, and the rest of our caring staff in serving the wonderful citizens of Haywood County and surrounding areas in providing the most compassionate service in caring for the loss of their loved one. 

Chris brings with him 40 years of experience in the funeral industry and is a graduate of John A. Gupton College of Mortuary Science. He is also licensed in the states of Arkansas and Mississippi and has earned the designation of Certified Funeral Service Practitioner.

In 2022, Chris was appointed to the Tennessee State  Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers by Governor Bill Lee. 

Chris also  heads our pet loss division which provides burial and cremation services for our loyal companions. 

Chris takes great pride that our funeral group is 100% locally owned and operated; therefore you can be assured that it is “Our Family Serving Your Family”.

Cindy is a Friendship, TN native and a 1993 graduate of Crockett County High School.  She graduated from John A. Gupton College of Mortuary in 2013 and has been serving the families of Crockett and Haywood Counties for the past 8 years.  In 2017, she received her license as a Pre-need Counselor. 

Cindy manages the Bells Funeral Home and the Brownsville Home. You can contact her at either locaiton at any time and schedule an appointment to meet with her, whether to make funeral arrangements, to obtain information about pre-needs or just to help anwers questions you might have about funerals, cremaitions, etc.  She has  a wealth of knowledge about funerals and  a compassionate heart to help you in your time of need.  

Cindy is married to Darron B. Blalock and has three children, Robert Pace, James Conner Pace and Brilee Blalock. Cindy is blessed with two grandsons, Wyatt West and Hunter Pace.   Cindy is an animal lover of all kinds.  Cindy is very proud to be serving alongside her son, Robert and son, James Conner.  

Richard was born and raised in Bolivar, TN.  He is a graduate of Bolivar Central High School, Union University, and Southwestern Seminary in Fort Worth, TX.   Richard brings great experience in Family Care having served on the staff of three churches over the past 40 years.  

Richard is available to meet with you to Pre-arrange your funeral in advance.  He will carefully walk you though the stages of funeral planning.  He has served on the staff at the Lea & Simmons Funeral Group for the past 5 years. 

Richard is married to Carol H. Dickerson of Franklin, TN; they have one son, Russell Dickerson, his wife Kailey, and two grandsons, Remington Dickerson and Radford Dickerson, all of Brentwood, TN;  one daughter, Claire Murphy, her husband,  Virgil Murphy of Baltimore, MD and one dog, named Keegan.   He enjoys being a grandparent and watching college sports. 

Barbie Smith is a life-long resident of Haywood County.  She brings a high level of expertise and service to our funeral home, having worked in the medical field for over 25 years.  Her dedication to helping people in their time of need is a tremendous asset to Lea & Simmons Funeral Home. 

She is married to Robert Smith and they have one daughter, Kimberly Hood and her husband, Robin who reside in Medina, TN. They are blessed with two grandchildren, Rylee and Sawyer.  

She and Robert are faithful members of New Vision Baptist Church in Brownsville.  She enjoys cooking, going to the lake with her family and cheering on her grandchildren as they play sports!

Rob is a 2013 graduate of Crockett County High School and the son of Cindy L. Blalock. Rob grew up in Friendship, TN.  He has been serving the families of Crockett and Haywood Counties for he past 10 years. His wife is Stephanie and they enjoy spending time together as a young family.  He is the father of two. 

 He is a big sports fan and is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to sports players and statistics related to their particular sport.  He particularly enjoys the Tennessee Volunteers,  Tennesee Titans, and the Memphis Grizzlies. 

Rob takes great pride is serving the people through the funeral home.  

James was born and raised in Crockett County by his mother, Cindy Blalock. He is a graduate of Crockett County High School.  He has been assisting with funerals for the past 4 years at Lea & Simmons, Brownsville and Bells. 

 He enjoys spending time with his friends and family.  He also finds enjoyment in his extensive collection of Gundam Model Kits.  

Mike Marbury was born and raised in Haywood County. The last of eight children, son of Herbert Lee Marbury and Olive Sullivan Marbury. Mike has one daughter, Summer Marbury Smith. He graduated from Bells High School in 1970 and a member of the Baptist Church. He retired from the Tennessee Farmer’s Coop after 40 ½ years. He is a volunteer for the Bells Fall Festival and his hobbies include gardening, cooking and traveling.

Baker was born and raised in Brownsville, TN.  He is a 2015 graduate of Haywood High School.  He has been working for the Brownsville Fire Department since 2016.  He presently  continues his work with the Fire Department and also joined the Lea & Simmons Funeral Home staff in 2023.  

Baker and his wife, Danielle have three children, Paxton Nabours, Ella Grace Reece and Annaleigh Young.  He enjoys taking trips to Gatlinburg and also enjoys taking pictures of nature.  

Serving the people of Haywood, Crockett and the surrounding counties is a great honor for Baker. 

Kathy Beaird began working at the Bells Funeral Home in 2023.  She was born in Chicago, IL and has lived most of her life in Crockett County.  Kathy graduated from Crockett County High School in the Class of 1994.  She then when on to study cosmetology at McCollum and Ross in Jackson, TN. Kathy owned and operated various hair salons in Alamo for 25 years. 

She has one daughter, Lauren K Beaird.  Kathy enjoys working with the public and looks forward to serving the people at the Bells Funeral Home. 

Clint has been a lifelong resident of Brownsville, TN. He loves his family and enjoys the opportunity to help others in their time of need at Lea & Simmons Funeral Home. 

Clint loves woodworking, hunting and fishing. He enjoys going to the sporting events of his grandchildren.  

His wife is Donna Dickinson, and he is the proud father of Paula and Frank, and four wonderful grandchildren, Conner, Emma, Carter, and Ellee.