Funeral Planned for One Stabbing Victim, Second Fights for Life

Eve Beasley, 60, and her friend, Kornegay, were working for the Meals on Wheels program at the Lakeside Baptist Church Thursday. A drifter stabbed Beasley and Kornegay multiple times inside the church kitchen, authorities said.

Funeral services for Kornegay were set for at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Church of the Good Shepherd, 231 N. Church St., in Rocky Mount. More than 700 people were expected to attend, family members of Beasley said.

Beasley’s son, Billy Beasley, said his mother's condition is improving, and she has been responding a little more every day. He has stayed by his mother’s side at at Pitt Memorial Hospital since Thursday.

Eve Beasley was stabbed 10 times in her neck, torso and back. She was upgraded from critical to serious condition Sunday, her son said.

The last couple of years have been difficult for his family, Billy Beasley said. In March 2006, he lost his father, Bill Beasley, in a Rocky Mount house fire.

But the support of the community has been helping his family pull through the tragedies, Bill Beasley said.

"The Beasley family appreciates all the love, support and prayers we've received from the people of Rocky Mount," he said.

Billy Beasley also thanked police for their response to the attack on his mother.

"We're very happy with the way the Rocky Mount Police Department has handled the situation," he said.

Police said Eve Beasley and Kornegay were calling shelters trying to find help for Tommy Lee Holiday, who then stabbed them. An officer spotted Holiday in a secluded park in Edgecombe County and arrested him early Friday morning.

Holiday was charged with first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder, as well multiple other offenses. He was being held without bond in the Nash County Jail. His first court appearance was scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 23.