Richard Joe “Joey” Myers, 56, of Washington Court House, Ohio, died unexpectedly in his sleep at his home on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, of sudden cardiac arrest.
Joey, as everyone knew him, was born February 18, 1970, and spent his whole life in Washington Court House. Nearly all of it was lived within a two-block radius. In the small county seat of Fayette County, Joey knew his town, and his town knew him. He belonged to those streets as much as the sidewalks and the old front porches along them.
He was raised by his parents, Patsy Ann (née Dilley) and Gary Lee Adams. They gave him the kind of childhood most kids only dream of. He attended Washington City Schools and started working young, learning the trades with his hands as a roofer and general contractor. In those early years he welcomed his first son, Derek J. Myers, with Dorraine Downing of Jeffersonville.
Joey never needed a manual. He was a craftsman and a tinkerer at heart, and people who knew him will tell you he could build or fix just about anything with bubblegum and fishing line, and make it look easy. He knew every inch of a bicycle and could have built one out of a tin can and some rubber. He loved fishing as a boy and through his adult years. He also loved Harley-Davidson and rock ‘n’ roll.
Like his mom, Joey was a collector. He owned more things than most people could keep track of, yet he was a neat freak through and through. Everything had its place, and not one thing was ever out of it. You could have licked ice cream off his floors. For all he had, he was just as quick to give it away. There was always something he was handing off to someone who needed it more, and many people are better off because of him.
His door was always open, too. Whether someone needed a couch to crash on for the night or something more, Joey made room, and he never hesitated to lend a hand to someone in need. He was an easygoing, down-to-earth guy who never let anything rush him. Everyone knew Joey moved slower than a turtle in reverse, and nobody would have had him any other way. To the people who loved him most, he’ll always be the cutest baby kangaroo anyone has ever seen.
About two decades ago, Joey met Tasha Wilson. They lived across Maple Street from each other. Joey lived in the house where he was raised, the same house where his mother had grown up before him. What started across a small-town street became a life together. It gave him his second son, Leevi C.J. Myers (Wilson), who became the pride and joy of Joey’s life and the light of his last 15 years.
His later years brought heavy losses. He said goodbye to his mother, Patsy, in 2017 and to his dad, Gary, in 2020. After that, Joey moved into the second house he would ever call home, on Elm Street. The house had been in his family his whole life and was handed down from his maternal grandmother, Rosemary Dilley, who also died in 2020. To the very end, Joey was a man rooted in his family and his hometown.
His heart gave out far too soon, but it was a big heart, and it was full.
Joey was preceded in death by his parents, Patsy Ann and Gary Lee Adams; his birth father, Dickie “Dick” Myers of Greenfield; his grandparents, Rosemary and John Dilley; his great-grandmother, Pauline Brown of Paint Street; his brother, Adam Myers; his aunts, Sonya Lynn Dilley and Roxanne Sue Queen; his cousin, Adam J. Queen; and his beloved honorary grandfather, Bobby G. Haines.
He is survived by his sons, Derek J. Myers and Leevi C.J. Myers (Wilson); his dearly loved life partner, Tasha Wilson, and her son, Treyen C.R. Wilson; his closest cousin, Ashley Dilley-Rohrer; his brother, Jason (Christy) Adams; his sister, Amber Beavers; his aunt, Virginia Welch of Columbus; his uncles, John V. Dilley Jr. (Brenda) and Frank Queen, and Frank’s son, Nick; his great-uncles, Jerry (Pat) Brown and James “Jim” (the late Linda) Brown; his cousins Sidney and “Little” Johnny Queen; his nephews, Skyler Adams and Braedon Moore; and his niece, Haleigh Moore. He is also survived by Penny Sue Myers (née Blackburn-Howland) and her children and grandchildren. He leaves behind extended family and more friends than anyone could ever list.
Services will be held at Roberts Funeral Home in Washington Court House at the convenience of the family. He will be buried at Highlawn Cemetery, the family cemetery along Route 22. Anyone who wishes to attend should contact family or friends for details.
