OBITUARY: Hope Elaine Duke

Hope Elaine (Batts) Duke, age 79, passed away on Tuesday, May 26, 2026. She was born in Ashland City, Tennessee, on May 29, 1946, to the late Henry F. Batts, Sr. and Tennessee Salome (Smith) Batts Sanders.

Hope was a dedicated and hardworking woman who touched many lives through the different roles she held over the years. She especially enjoyed working alongside her husband, Don, as co-owner of Ri-Don’s Decorating Center, and she found joy in taking part in craft shows and sharing their talents with others.

Throughout her life, Hope was known and loved by many through her work at Miss Ledell’s Daycare, Toddler’s Inn Day Care, Cheatham County Nursing Home, and The Busy Bee with Fay Lee. Before her retirement, many also came to know her through her work as a funeral attendant at Cheatham County Funeral Home, where she faithfully helped keep everything in order. Hope was deeply proud of her mission work with Red Bird Mission, where she built lifelong friendships and left a lasting impression on those who knew her. She was dearly missed there after her illness.

Hope is preceded in death by her parents; husband, Donald Lee Duke; children, Starr Hagewood and Stacey “Bubba” Duke; siblings, H.F. Batts, Jr, Ann Batts Patterson, Gayle Batts Barber, and Jimmy Batts.

She is survived by her granddaughters, Mandy (Jay) Holcomb, Beth (Drew) Williams, and Dakota Duke; great-grandchildren, Case Holcomb, Rilee Williams, and Weston Williams; sister, Mary Jo Jackson; daughter-in-law, Dusty Duke; son-in-law, Mark Hagewood; sister-in-law, Glenda Batts; brother-in-law, Tommy Barber; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Memories and condolences can be left on the obituary at the funeral home website.

Funeral Services Provided By Cheatham County Funeral Home – Ashland City, 117 Elizabeth Street, Ashland City, TN 37015.

For more obituaries visit our obituaries page.

This obituary was published by Cheatham County Funeral Home – Ashland City.

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