Brenda Kay Hatley Bateman
January 3, 1954 – December 5, 2024

Brenda Bateman was born January 3, 1954, in Malvern Arkansas, to A.J. Hatley and Johnnie
Porterfield Hatley. Her family moved to Lancaster, Texas when Brenda was a young child. She
graduated from Lancaster High School, where she met the group of friends who led her to the Lord.
She attended Jacksonville College and Texas Woman’s University, where she earned her degree in
nursing. Brenda first met Paul Bateman in spring of 1975, while she was still in Jacksonville. They
dated two years before becoming engaged, and, May 20, 1978, they married in Arlington, Texas,
where they made their home. Six months after Paul and Brenda married, three boys ages 16, 15 and
9 needed a place to stay. In Brenda’s words, “The boys were a perfect fit for our family. Half Chinese.
Half American. It felt like they had been ours forever.”

Brenda was a multi-tasker. While working several years as a surgical nurse and pediatric hospice
nurse, Brenda would help Paul in his automotive business. In 1993, Paul was diagnosed with a blood
disorder, similar to leukemia. Brenda took care of him, with the help of his parents and brothers.
During this time, Brenda attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Ft. Worth, earning
her Master of Arts in Christian Education. She joined the staff of Arlington Chinese Church as the
Children’s Minister, serving there from 1997 to 2018. Paul died in April, 2010.

In 2019, after retiring from the Chinese church, Brenda decided she wanted to move to Jacksonville,
Texas. She rented an apartment in Jacksonville with plans to move there. However, her daddy-in-law
became very ill, and Brenda stayed to take care of his medical needs. She spent weekdays in
Arlington, and weekends in Jacksonville. In December, 2020, Brenda was diagnosed with breast
cancer. After her daddy-in-law’s death in 2021, and after completing radiation treatments, Brenda sold
her Arlington home and moved to Jacksonville full time.

Brenda had the heart of a true volunteer. And her volunteerism wasn’t “once a week or once a month”
positions. Just to name a few…
– Active in Arlington Clergy & Police Partnership (ACAPP), which often involved riding with a
police officer on calls that involved family disputes where children were present
– Vitas Hospice volunteer, sitting with HIV/AIDS patients
– Mentoring young women, college and professional, on a regular basis
– First Baptist Church Jacksonville “Disciple World” team leader
– Jacksonville College Alumni Board
– Jacksonville College Board of Trustees
– Volunteer at the local animal shelter

Brenda also wrote a weekly blog on her Facebook page, “Pathway Parables”, reflections of her
connections to God through the world He created.

Brenda was preceded in death by her husband, Paul Bateman; parents, A.J. and Johnnie Hatley;
father- and mother-in-law, BMA Missionary Jack and LaTrell Bateman; and nephew Thomas
Bateman. She is survived by brothers-in-law John (Kathy) Bateman, Mark Bateman; Bruce Bateman;
and sister-in-law Ann (Dan) Toepperwein; sons, John Chu, Bill (Deanna) Chu, Marshall Chu; and six
grandchildren, Erin, Evan, Elissa, Elana, Cameron and Hayden; Aunt Sally Morgan; Aunt Micky
Shatkin, many, many cousins, nieces, and nephews. Brenda also leaves many children, including
many who are now adults, whom she taught, mentored and loved, in her ministry in the name of
Jesus Christ.