A Lifetime of Service: Terry Beville
(April 29,1945 – December 30, 2024)
Lawrence Terry Beville, Jr. walked into eternal life to meet his Lord and Savior on December 30th, 2024. Born in Louisville, KY, his family moved to Tampa when he was two. He graduated from Hillsborough High School in 1963, where he was on the baseball, golf and football teams, and also played the trumpet in the marching band. Prior to his rent to own career, he attended Mercer University, served as Youth and Recreation Director at Seminole Heights Baptist Church (Tampa) and East Hill Baptist Church (Tallahassee), and graduated from USF with a degree in accounting. Shortly after graduating, Terry passed the CPA exam.
In the 1970s Terry established and opened his own CPA firm in Tampa, where he took on a single store Bi-Rite Company as a client. The RTO concept and industry interested Terry to the point that he eventually sold his CPA practice and joined Bi-Rite, where he served as the company’s CFO for over 25 years. Terry quickly became involved in the RTO community by serving through committees and leadership positions where he gained much respect from all as he worked tirelessly to advance the best interests of this industry over the span of four decades.
Terry had a genuine love for this industry and the people in it, and it gave him great joy to serve alongside so many friends within TRIB, APRO, and FRDA. His impact was evident through leadership, including his many TRIB and APRO board terms and offices held, his appointment to represent APRO in front of the IRS in 1994, and his initiative to re-activate FRDA in 1997 and serve as its president for 8 continuous years. In each of these circles, he received prestigious awards and repeated recognition for his contributions, all of which gave him great honor, but it was cultivating opportunities for learning, sharing ideas, and helping each other that gave him the greatest sense of purpose in this industry. His involvement in APRO’s legislative conferences early on inspired him to organize and lead FRDA’s first legislative conference, which grew into an annual event and a driving force behind FRDA’s continued strength and success over the years. Terry was also one of the generous minds that dreamed up the APRO Employee Disaster Relief Fund and strongly advocated for the adoption of the fund’s permanent standing in this industry. Making rent-to-own the best it could be was always at the forefront of his mind, and the friends he made along the way he considered his greatest achievement in this industry.
Terry and his wife Jean joined First Baptist Church of Temple Terrace (now Mission Hill Church) in 1971 and have faithfully served there and raised their family there for over 50 years. His life centered around honoring the Lord in all he did, from leading youth groups to being a deacon to serving as church treasurer for many years. Aside from church and work activities, Terry enjoyed supporting and cheering on Tampa Bay and FSU sports teams, watching his granddaughter play volleyball, family vacations and international travel adventures, keeping up with the latest news, and taking the family dogs on walks. His favorite time was always family time, and he considered it the greatest blessing to have his girls, son-in-law, and granddaughter all close by – able to see him and share every day with him. His family was his greatest pride and joy.
In December of 2022, Terry was diagnosed with a motor neuron disease and navigated the unknown always with a smile on his face and a determination to make the best of each day. He is survived by Jean, his devoted wife of 57 years; his beloved daughter Suzanne; his beloved daughter Sharon Tomaszewski (Jim) and his cherished granddaughter Ava; and many loving family members. Terry was loved deeply and will be missed greatly, and he will always live on in the hearts of those who knew him.
Terry was laid to rest in a private graveside service. A celebration of his life will be held at 1:00 PM on February 8, 2025, at Mission Hill Church in Temple Terrace. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, a memorial contribution be made to the RTO Employees Disaster Relief Fund, or by sponsoring a youth in your home church for a designated event such as camp or mission trip.
