Christine Wright

Christine Wright passed away on March 15, at her home in Richmond. She was 83 years old. Chris was born on March 31, 1941, in Breathitt County to James Elmer Terry and Omeda Hadden Terry. She was the fourth out of five children, raised by a single mother after her father passed away when she was four years old. She loved sharing stories of growing up in “Bloody Breathitt” where she once had to hide behind the corner of a downtown building during a shoot-out on the street. Somehow, she made that sound like a fun adventure.

After leaving Jackson, Chris moved to Lexington and attended UK. She left before finishing her degree and moved to Nashville, TN where she met her husband, Bill Wright. He described her as the smartest person in any room and his all-time favorite running buddy. They married soon after meeting and remained so until the end for 56 years. They had three children together: Olivia Rae Wright (husband Todd Korthuis), Billy Lucas Wright (wife Lisa Wright), and Lorah Wright Shackelford (husband Brent Shackelford). They had three grandchildren: Sarah Rae Shackelford, Grace Ellen Korthuis, and Thomas Jacob Shackelford. They also had two great-grandchildren: Keegan Kendrick Layne and Kamryn Kobe Layne.

Chris had many talents and loved to try new things. She played the saxophone, the piano, and the banjo. She wrote song lyrics and sold them to songwriters in Nashville. She won awards in high school for handwriting and later mastered calligraphy. These talents did not transfer to any of her children. She was a certified lab technician and later ran her own tanning bed business. She was a wonderful and committed mother, coaching softball, teaching the kids all how to swim, how to laugh, and how to never judge others. She was a role-modeled unconditional love. She managed to make everyone around her feel a little better than when they started. She was extremely intelligent and always humble. She will be missed more than she could have imagined. The world is a lesser place without her in it. 

Private family services will be held.