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Rev. William Tedder Jr.

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Reverend William Emerson Tedder, Jr., transitioned to his Heavenly Home April 13, 2021. He was born July 29, 1925, in Vardaman, grew up there, and graduated from Vardaman High School.

He answered the call to military duty during World War II. He joined the United States Navy and served throughout the South Pacific. He earned an Honorable Discharge and the Victory Medal for Distinguished Service. 

In 2013, he was selected with 92 other World War II veterans for the Honors Flight Program. They traveled together to Washington, D.C. on October 1, 2013, where they toured the World War II Memorial and visited other historical sites.

When World War II ended, he returned to Calhoun County. On April 13, 1947, he married his sweetheart, Carolyn Thompson, of Big Creek. Later, they had a beloved daughter, Sheila Carol Tedder. He described life with his wife and daughter as, “Days of Heaven on Earth.”

In 1959, he answered God’s call to the preaching ministry. To prepare, he earned degrees from Clarke Memorial College, Mississippi College, and New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. While engaged in his studies, her pastored churches in Calhoun, Neshoba, and Adams counties.

Upon his graduation from seminary, he devoted his ministry to churches in Smith, Neshoba, Lincoln, Rankin and Yazoo Counties. He and his wife served faithfully as a pastor and wife team in each church and community where the Lord led them. They truly loved people and compassionately ministered to them.

After retirement from full time ministry, he taught Bible classes at Hinds Community College in Pearl. He also served as interim minister throughout Mississippi and preached revival services until he was eighty-six years old. He humbly considered himself, “Blessed with health and vibrancy so I can reach people for Jesus Christ.” He was a loyal member of First Baptist Brandon and Believers’ Life Group.

He is survived by his daughter, Sheila Carol Tedder, and sister, Glenda Tedder Donoho, both of Pearl; sister-in-law, Dannie Poe, Pontotoc; brother-in-law, L.C. (Wynell) Thompson, Jr., Booneville; nieces, Deanna Poe Prewett, Pontotoc; Lanell Dorrah (Bill) Kellum, Bellefontaine, and nephew, Bob (Michelle) Poe, Ecru. 

He is predeceased by his cherished wife, Carolyn Thompson Tedder; his parents; sister, Josephine Tedder Hayes; mother-in-law, Jakie Boland Thompson; father-in-law, L.C. Thompson, Sr., and sisters-in-law Ava Poe Petreman and Geraldine Dorrah.

His celebration of life service was April 16 at Baldwin-Lee Funeral Home in Pearl. Interment was in Floral Hills Memory Gardens, Pearl. Rev. Bobby Douglas of Bruce, close friend of Rev. Tedder, and Rev. Rodney Bounds, Senior Pastor, Brandon Baptist Church officiated the services.

Memorial donations may be made to to Mission Dignity for retired pastors at Mission: Dignity-Guidestone, P.O. Box 819109, Dallas, Texas 75381 or to Gideons International, P.O. Box 97251, Washington, D.C. 20090-7252.


Robert Allen Taylor

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Robert Allen “Tater” Taylor, 61, passed away April 14, 2021 in Pontotoc suddenly.  He was born July 29, 1959 in Pontotoc to  Robert Lee and Grace Young Taylor.

He worked in the furniture industry before his disability.  He enjoyed fishing and  video games to pass the time away.

He was preceded in death by his parents, and a brother, James Phillip Taylor

He is survived by his wife and companion, Lounell Shumpert, Calhoun City; step daughter, Brittany Moore Graham, Oxford; step son, Justin Thomas Moore, Oxford and a host of friends and family.

His graveside service was April 17 at  Pleasant Grove Cemetery in Pontotoc with Bro. Pete Gregory  officiating.

Online condolence may be left at www.parkermemorialfuneralhomes.com

Betty Hood

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Betty Joyce Hood, 81, died April 12, 2021, at Methodist University Hospital in Memphis. A graveside service was April 17 at Oxford Memorial Cemetery with Rev. Will Howie officiating. 

Born in Oxford to William and Jimmie Davis Hazel, she was a longtime manager for Family Dollar, and formerly worked as a dental assistant in Seattle, WA and in Oxford for Dr. Roy Selvidge. She was a talented gardener and enjoyed spending time outdoors tending to her yard.

Survivors include her husband, Jimmy D. Hood, Oxford; daughter, Maria Adams, Dallas, GA; step-daughter, Jennifer (Robert) Hood, Southaven; step-son, Jason (Lacey) Hood, Southaven; brothers, Jon (Denise) Hazel, Battle Creek, MI; Robbie (Nancy) Hazel, Battle Creek, MI; grandchildren, Leah, Casey, Kelsey, Keegan, Kaylee, Tucker, and great-grandchildren, Jake and Maddie.

Expressions of sympathy should be made to the SPCA via https://www.aspca.org/ or the charity of your choice.

For additional information or to leave an online condolence, please call 662.234.7971 or visit www.wallerfuneralhome.com

Larry Haggard

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Larry W. Haggard, 68, of Pittsboro, passed away at his home April 15, 2021. His funeral service was April 18, 2021 at Brooksville Baptist Church.

Memorials may be made to the Gideons International, P.O. Box 97251, Washington, D.C. 20090-7251 or any children’s research hospital. Cockrell Funeral Home of Macon was entrusted with arrangements. 

Larry Wesley Haggard was born in Macon on August 18, 1952 to Margaret Hurt and James Wesley Haggard. He graduated from Noxubee High School. He went Clark College and Mississippi College, where he received degrees from both colleges. He received his Master of Divinity from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and his doctorate from Lake Charles Bible College.

In May 1972 he married the love of his life, the former Sue Ann Featherston.

He served seven churches during his career. He was interim pastor at Haynes Blvd Baptist Church, Pleasant Ridge Baptist Church, Bradley; Wayside Baptist Church, Vicksburg.; Gore Springs Baptist Church; Enom Baptist Church, Cedar Bluff; served on staff at Faith Baptist Church, West Point; Rocky Mount Baptist Church, Pittsboro, and was currently serving Bentley Baptist Church, Calhoun City.

He loved children and Vacation Bible School was his favorite time of year. He mentored a lot of young ministers during his ministry. He was a substitute teacher for the Calhoun County School District in Vardaman and Calhoun Academy.

Everyone who knew him knew he was a die-hard Ole Miss fan. He looked forward to going camping at Lake Chicot with his cousins in June each year and he enjoyed working in cutting his yard. He was past president for Clark College Alumni Association 2018-2020.

He is preceded in death by his parents; siblings, James and Dennis Haggard, Barbara Mordecai, Corine Peters Brown, Polly Moore, Faye Powers, and Ruth Higginbotham. 

He is survived by his wife, Susie Featherston Haggard, Pittsboro; son: Rick (Jana) Haggard, Mooreville; granddaughters: Alexandra and Ava Haggard, and numerous nieces and nephews. 

Alfred Guerrero

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Alfredo Guerrero, 71, of Vardaman, passed from this life April 15, 2021 at NMMC in Tupelo. He was born November 29, 1949 in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico to Pablo Guerrero and Carmen Lopez.

He was a man who knew the value of hard work, like so many others in his generation. He spent much of his life in the agriculture industry as a farmer. He was a simple family man who cherished his loved ones, especially his grandchildren. He will be greatly missed by his expansive, tightly knit family, but he has gone to rest in place far greater than human comprehension.  

He leaves his wife, Maria De-La-Luz Guerrero, Vardaman; sons, Jose (Laura) Guerrero, Robinsdale, Mn; Carols (Raquel) Guerrero, Houston; Pablo Guerrero, Vardaman; Salvador (Raquel) Guerrero, Woodland; Jorge (Claudia) Guerrero, Bruce; daughters: Maria Christina Bejarano, Algoma; Olga Lida Guerrero, Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico; brother, Jose Luis Guerrero, Los Fresnos, Tx.; sisters: Maria Elena, Brownsville, Tx.; Dora Guerrero, Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico; Dolores Ruiz, Mo.; grandchildren, Jorge Luis Guerrero, Melissa Guerrero, Andy Guerrero, Juventio Bejarano, Alex Bejarano, Pamela Bejarano, Angel Xavier Guerrero, Angelina Selena Guerrero, Diana Troncoso, Adrian Brice Guerrero, Diana Guerrero and Janeth Guerrero. He was preceded in death by his parents; brother, Jose Alfredo Guerrero, and sister, Griselda Guerrero. 

His funeral service was April 22 in the Chapel of Parker Memorial Funeral Home with Father Cesa Sanchez officiating. Juventino Bejarano, Carlos Guerrero, Jorge Guerrero, Jorge Guerrero Jr., Jose Guerrero, and Pablo Guerrero carried him to rest in Hillcrest Cemetery.

Annie Sharp

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Annie Ruth Potts Sharp,73, passed from this life on April 12, 2021 at her home in Oxford. Born  March 1, 1948 in Lafayette County, she was one of seven children born to Aurie and Mary Clyde Joblin Potts.

She married Barney W. Sharp and built a wonderful life with him. She spent her days as a homemaker, always looking after the needs of her children and grandchildren. She had a love for sewing, and she  used her  skills to piece together her daughter’s wedding dress. When she wasn’t at her sewing machine, she could be found tending to her  vegetable garden. She was a member of New El Bethel Baptist Church.

She is survived by husband, Barney W Sharp, Oxford; sons, Barry Sharp, Oxford; Scott Sharp, Oxford; daughter, Karen (Ron) Wallace, Oxford; grandchildren, Meghan Sharp, Madison Sharp, John Brady Sharp, Courtney Sharp Giles, Tyler Scott Sharp, Lyndsey Springer, Daniel Edwards; great grandchildren, Vera Springer, Brandon Harris, Ava Harris, Thomas Giles and Riley Giles. She was preceded in death by her parents;  brothers, Alvie, Newell, Bill, Dooley and James Potts, and sister, Mary Lou Potts.

Her funeral service was April 15 in the chapel of Parker Memorial Funeral Home with Bro. Bobby Snow officiating. Jimmy Gregory, Richard Harris, Ben Potts, Ken Potts, James Sharp, and Donnie Woodward carried her to rest in Webb Cemetery. Robert Barbee and Frank Brown served as honorary pallbearers.

A.G. Gibson

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A.G. Gibson, Jr., 83, passed away April 19, 2021, in Calhoun City. He was born August 18, 1937 in Poinsett County, Ar., to Albert Grover Gibson, Sr. and Dessie Gibson.

He was a farmer for many years and also owned Gibson Paint Company. He proudly served our country in the Army. He loved spending time on the lake crappie fishing, going on Lynn Casey’s potato route and refinishing gun stocks with his long time friend Don Keifer.

He represented and served his community in several roles during his lifetime as Calhoun County Justice Court Judge, past Mayor of Vardaman, Alderman for the Town of Derma and serving as a Municipal Court Judge. He was also a member of Midway Baptist Church and a Shriner.

Those left to cherish his memory are wife, Kathryn Ann Gibson, Calhoun City; daughters Gale (Tommy) Terry, Crystal Springs; Lisa Gavathas, Tallahassee, FL; son, Albert “Joe” (Amy Gerbig) Gibson, Mobile, AL; brother, Franklin (Wilma) Gibson, Jonesboro, AR; niece, Terry Gibson, Jonesboro, AR; nephew, Al (Debbie) Gibson, Brandon; grandchildren, Ryan (Natalie) McGehee, Shannon (Nick) Ivy, Lee (Kala) LeGrand, Panajiotis Gavathas, Martinos Gavathas, and eight great-grandchildren.

He is preceded in death by his parents, and grandchild, Nathan Dye.

His service was April 22 at Midway Cemetery with Bro. Al Gaspard officiating. Al Gibson, Nick Ivy, Lee LeGrand, Ryan McGehee, Walker McGehee and Tommy Terry served as pallbearers. Lynn Casey, Martinos Gavathas, Panagiotis Gavathas and Don Keifer were honorary pallbearers.

Parker Memorial Funeral Home was honored to serve the Gibson family.

Geraldine McGreger

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Geraldine Clark McGreger, age 94, of Vardaman, passed away April 22, 2021. Her  graveside service was April 25 at Poplar Springs Cemetery in Vardaman with Bro. Robert Earl Alexander officiating.

She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Odis E. McGreger; son, Charles Lee McGreger; daughter, Patricia Ann Ellis; two infant children; grandson, Odis “Buster” McGreger; great-grandsons, Hunter Lee McGreger and Mac Hester, and daughter-in-law Betty McGreger. 

She is survived by sons, Johnny McGreger, Odis Earl (Nita) McGreger, Jimmy (Linda) McGreger, and Sam (Carolyn) McGreger; son-in-law, Richard Ellis, and daughter-in-law, Mary Ann McGreger, all of Vardaman; 14 grandchildren, 30 great-grandchildren, and three great-great-grandchildren.

Pallbearers were Johnny Brown, Bubba Freely, Sammy McGreger, Austin McGreger, Chris McGreger, Preston McGreger, Brandon Lovorn, and Bo McGreger.

Memorial donations may be made to First Baptist Church in Vardaman.

Norwood-Wyatt Funeral Home was in charge of the arrangements.


Barbara Turner

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Barbara Faye Boyle ‘Honey” Turner, 67, after passing suddenly at her home, entered the heavenly gates on April 23, 2021. She was born May 29, 1953, in Yalobusha County to William Vance  and Salima Faye Simpson Boyle.

She was a graduate of Coffeeville High School, class of 1971. After graduating, she married the love of her life Red Turner on June 12, 1971, spending nearly 50 years together. She was a devoted member of Concord Baptist Church serving wherever she could. She retired from the Piggly Wiggly Deli in Bruce, where she served with a smile and greeted everyone with grace and compassion.

 She was devoted to her husband, children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. She  enjoyed doing for others, whether it was cooking, gardening, woodworking, decorating or just feeding the fish in the pond in front of her house.

She was preceded in death by her parents; sisters, Mary Costilow, Doris Emhovick, Shine Alexander, and brothers, Odis Boyle and Eddie Pell.

Left to cherish her memory are husband, Winston L. “Red” Turner, Bruce; daughter,  Rhonda Michelle (Michael) Huffman, Bruce; son, Wesley Brent (Kristy) Turner, Bruce; sister Dot Weeks, New Jersey; brother, Louis Boyle, Coffeeville; grandchildren, Tyler (Erica) Lester, Joseph Lester, Wayne (Laila) Huffman, Hope Huffman, Dallas (Amy) Turner, Cheyenne Turner, Maddison (Tony) Hernandez, Blake Hernandez, Braxton Hernandez, Ryan Lohrman, and eight great grandchildren.

Her funeral service was April 25 at Parker Memorial Funeral Home Chapel in Bruce with Bro. Bill Williamson officiating.  Burial was in Concord Cemetery.  Pallbearers were  Blake Hernandez, Wayne Huffman, Joseph Lester, Tyler Lester, Dallas Turner, and Tony Parker. Honorary pallbearers were Adam Boyle, Louis Boyle Jr., Dwayne Collums, Braxton Hernandez, Cainan Lenard, Tony Rompon and Randy White.

 Parker Memorial Funeral Home was honored to serve the Turner family.

Dudley R. Davis Jr.

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Dudley Russell Davis, Jr., artist, educator, farmer and lifelong learner, died peacefully at his home in the Reid Community near Vardaman, on Saturday, December 5, 2020, following a year long battle with cancer.

He was born in Bruce on October 29, 1938, to Dudley Russell (Dud) Davis and Rena Ola Hannaford Davis. He was a 1956 graduate of Bruce High School and then attended Itawamba Community College. He completed his Bachelor of Arts in Speech and Drama from the University of Mississippi in 1961. After receiving his degree from Ole Miss, he  embarked on his career as an educator, teaching in the Georgia Public School System at Piney Grove Junior High near Jesup, GA, a sojourn he often reflected nostalgically upon as a most enjoyable time in his life. “I fell in love with the people there. They gave me so much freedom.” Continuing his career as an educator, he later taught in Brunswick, GA, where he lived in a house with an ocean view. He had many great memories from this time of his life, and his friends in Mississippi are fortunate that he ultimately decided to return home to the family farm.

After St. Simons Island, he returned to Mississippi to attend graduate school at Ole Miss, where he completed his Master’s Degree in Speech and Drama, after which he taught at Northwest Community College. While at Northwest, he attended Memphis State University (now University of Memphis) to pursue a specialist’s degree.

The love of art shaped his personality and his approach to life. He found beauty in ideas, images and objects, and he had a gift for communicating his feelings and philosophy through his art. He also had a deep love for the many friends he cultivated through his years of artistic expression as a speech and theater instructor and through visual art. His love of art was almost matched by his love of people and travel. The list of friends is extensive, and so is the list of places he visited over the years, including New Mexico, Alaska, and Horn Island, off the Gulf Coast of Mississippi. Some of the pieces he produced as a result of his visits to Horn Island ended up in the gallery of Memphis College of Art.

His work was also later displayed at the Faulkner Museum in Union County and also at the Corinth Historical Museum.

As the health of his parents began to fail, he returned to Calhoun County in 1975 to become their caregiver and maintain the family farm, raising cattle, hay and row crops. During this time he was active in the Reid Jaycees and activities at Poplar Springs Baptist Church. He was appointed to the Northwest Community College Board of Trustees. He also served on the board of Bancorp South, the Mental Health Advisory Committee, Poplar Springs Cemetery Association, and the Child Development Council. He also served on the Soil and Water Conservation Board 30 years, remaining committed to soil conservation as a landowner until his death. In 2012, he received the Distinguished Servant Award at the MLK Banquet in Calhoun County. He was also a dedicated listener and supporter of Mississippi Public Broadcasting. Throughout the 1990’s, each July, his former home, The Sharecropper, was part of the tour of the Faulkner Conference at Ole Miss.

These activities and his dedication to them speak to his civic mindedness and patriotism. A “Yellow Dog Democrat,” he was always a proud American, dedicated to the election process and the two-party system of government.

His innate understanding that nature is the world’s ultimate art led him to enjoy creating art from natural items. He conducted many workshops with children, showing them how they could collect natural items and create unusual pieces of art. For several years he displayed and sold his natural pieces of art work during his open houses at The Sharecropper. Other artist friends brought their artwork to display and sell the last Saturday in October until his health begin to decline.

His activities as an artist and conservationist were featured in countless magazines and newspapers over the years. His dear friend, Joel McNeece of the Calhoun County Journal, found inspiration out of their friendship of many years, and featured Dudley often in his newspaper. Joel “always enjoyed Dudley’s art and stories, almost as much as his friendship.” Like numerous other friends and acquaintances of Dudley’s, Joel often enjoyed the magnificent view from the deck of “The Aerie,” Dudley’s home of 12 years, and where he was so grateful that he was able to spend his last days.

 He leaves sisters, Martha Davis Killebrew (John), of Winona, and Kay Davis Ellis (Gowan), Clinton, and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and a  sister, Virginia Ruth Davis.

A memorial service will be held at Parker Memorial Funeral Home Chapel in Bruce,  on Saturday, May 1 at noon with visitation beginning at 11 a.m. The family requests donations be made to Mississippi Public Broadcasting in Jackson or Sanctuary Hospice in Tupelo. Dudley’s many friends will take comfort in the wonderful memories of a life well-lived. He was a special human being who will always be remembered and loved by many.





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