Emily Richardson Newman

Emily Richardson Newman, born to William (Babe) and Mary Louise Richardson, passed from this world on Sunday, September 13th, 2026, at the age of 86, after a vigil of family and caregivers.
 
She was raised on the Richardson farm, in Hawesville, Kentucky. This is where she learned to hunt, fish, garden and cook. She loved all animals, particularly cats. She was voted “Most likely to end up in Jail” by her classmates at Hancock County High School after she dangled a classmate from the second-story balcony of the school after witnessing him torturing a cat. She soon left the farm and married a traveling salesman named Carl Phillips. Together they had a daughter, Sandy. Emily worked as a personal trainer, a sales clerk for Bernard’s and Schultz’s dress shops in Owensboro, and eventually became a test tube engineer for Kentucky Electronics. Later, she met and married John Newman. Together they owned and operated Denimville, a retail denim shop in Owensboro. During this time, John expanded his Mr. Tuxedo Formalwear business. Emily became his sales account manager and expanded the business over several states. They worked and built a life together, eventually retiring to their homebase on Lake Barkley in Eddyville, KY. They loved to fish, becoming snowbirds, spending their winters in Tavares, FL and their summers in Nestor Falls, Canada, so they could fish year-round. Emily loved to travel and was fortunate to visit several foreign countries and many of the 50 states.
 
Emily adored her two grandsons, Ian and Keegan Joslyn. She was very involved in their lives, and they spent summers and vacations together in Canada. Emily became a Lone Oak Elementary School groupie, attending all of her grandsons’ activities, throwing elaborate homeroom parties, and providing a yearly Christmas party for up to 50 kids chosen by the school resource center, and attending Lone Oak High School Band activities.
 
After John’s death in 2011, Emily became more involved in feral cat rescue, trapping, vetting, and finding homes for dozens of stray cats in Lyon County. She added two more kittens to her beloved Cat Newman, and the three became her family and main focus. Emily continued to travel until a stroke in 2015 left her paralyzed. She remained independent in Tavares, FL until 2024, when she moved back to Western KY.
 
She will be remembered for her assertiveness, her desire to take care of others, her flower and vegetable gardens, her sense of adventure, and her endless love of cats, which she was allergic to!
 
She was preceded in death by her husband, John Newman, parents, two brothers, Billy and Dean Richardson, and 2 sisters, Lillian Driskell and Bettie Roberts, and several nieces and nephews.
 
She is survived by her daughter, Sandy Phillips Joslyn (Doug), two grandsons, Ian Joslyn (Ying) of Arvada, Colorado, and Keegan Joslyn (fiancée, Jessica Atkinson), and her beloved Callie Cat, who never left her side.
 
The family would like to thank her caregivers, Melanie, Beth, and Donette, in addition to her Hospice nurses. All who made it possible for her to have the care she needed to remain in her home with Callie.
 
Expressions of Sympathy may be made in the form of contributions to McGangsters, PO Box 3036, Paducah, KY 42002.
 
A funeral service will be held at 11:00 AM on Thursday, September 17, 2026, at Milner & Orr Funeral Home of Paducah with Bro. Bud Russell officiating. A private entombment will be held at Memorial Park Cemetery in Evansville, Indiana.
 
Visitation will be held from 10:00 AM until the service hour of 11:00 AM on Thursday, September 17, 2026, at Milner & Orr Funeral Home of Paducah.
 
Share a memory or leave a message for the family at www.milnerandorr.com.