Archives
 By  Staff Reports Published 
3:33 am Thursday, May 10, 2001

OBITUARIES FOR THURSDAY, MAY 10, 2001

By Staff
RUBY SPEED THOMAS
Retired executive secretary
Services for Ruby Speed Thomas will be held Friday at 11:30 a.m. at James F. Webb Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Danny Chisolm officiating. Burial will be in Magnolia Cemetery.
Mrs. Thomas, 92, of Meridian, died Monday, May 7, 2001, at Riley Hospital. She was employed as a executive secretary for 35 years with the Meridian Housing Authority. Mrs. Thomas was a member of Central Baptist Church.
Survivors include a daughter-in-law, Bobbie Majures Thomas and two grandsons, Grady Randall Thomas and his wife, Dancie, and Kenny Wade Thomas, all of Oklahoma City; a granddaughter, Jennifer Sides Cook and her husband, Jim, of Edmond, Okla.; a great-grandson, Kenny Sides and his wife, Cheryle, and a great-great-granddaughter, Sarah Nicole Sides, all of Fair Oak Ranch, Texas; a sister, Grace Speed Tullos and her husband, Enos, of Jackson, Tenn.; two special nieces, Marian Keene Gullette and Virginia Keene Duvalle, both of Meridian; and several nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by a son, Grady Thomas Jr. of Oklahoma City; two sisters, Pauline Speed Keene and Margaree Hill Davis; four brothers, H.C., Ed, Louie and Bob Speed; and her parents, P.C. and Ola Davis Speed.
The family requests memorials be made to Central Baptist Church or Guardian Angel Hospice.
Visitation will be Friday from 9 a.m.-11:30 a.m. at the funeral home.
MICHAEL DONALD FELIX
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. Services for Michael Donald Felix were held May 4, at St. John's Cathedral with the Revs. John Ross Dean and Mary Leigh Bergeron officiating. Burial was in Beech Hills Cemetery in Givhans, S.C. Rose Mortuary Mann Heritage Chapel was in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Felix, 80, of Knoxville, died Wednesday, May 2, 2001, at Shannondale Health Care Center. He was a lay minister in the Episcopal Church and a retired engineer.
Survivors include his daughters, Jacqueline Weeks of Summerville, S.C., Jeanne Scott of Knoxville and Melissa Jacob of Jackson; sons, Steven B. Felix of Knoxville, Kerry J. Felix of Irvine, Calif., and James B. Felix of Jacksonville, Fla.; 15 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Maggie B. Felix and a son, Michael D. Felix Jr.
The family requests memorials be made to St. John's Cathedral, 413 W. Cumberland Ave., Knoxville, TN 37902, Shannondale Nursing Home (Bird) Habitat, 5th Floor, Knoxville, TN 37909 or The Christian Children's Fund.
SANDRA W. JACKSON
CLEVELAND, Tenn. Services for Sandra W. Jackson were held Wednesday in the chapel of Ralph Buckner Funeral Home with Revs. Arnold Hambright and Bob Lockwood officiating. Graveside services will be held Friday at 6 p.m. at Salem Cumberland Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Sebastopol, Miss., with Revs. Charles Morrow and Chester Estes Jr. officiating.
Mrs. Jackson, 53, of Calhoun, died Monday, May 7, 2001. Mrs. Jackson was a native of Philadelphia, Miss. She was a member of the Charleston Cumberland Presbyterian Church.  She was an executive secretary at Olin Corporation. Mrs. Jackson was the daughter of the late Duff Thomas Watkins and Ina Jewel Morrow Watkins.
Survivors include her husband, Lamar Jackson and a son, Mark Thomas Jackson, both of Calhoun; a daughter, Melanie Ann Jackson of Crescent Springs, Ky.; a sister, Hilda Crawford, a niece, Amy Stokes and a nephew, Tommy Crawford and a great-niece, Ashley Stokes, all of Philadelphia, Miss.
The family requests memorials be made to the Ronald McDonald House, 200 Central Ave., Chattanooga, TN 37403-9921.
Visitation will be Friday from 3 p.m.-6 p.m. at the church prior to the service.
Notes of sympathy may be sent online to jacksoncondolences@ralphbuckner.com.
ENCHIL ANGELIEGHA MITCH
SEBASTOPOL Services for Enchil Angeliegha Mitch will be held today at 2 p.m. at Hope Indian Baptist Church with the Rev. Thomas Ben Jr. officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery with Milling Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
Infant Mitch, 6-months-old, of Conehatta, died Tuesday, May 8, 2001, in Conehatta.
Survivors include her mother, Matilda Mitch, her father, Michael Mitch, her maternal grandmother Eula King, and three brothers, Nathaniel, Michael Jr. and Brandon Mitch, all of Conehatta; and her paternal grandmother, Patricia Mizell of Philadelphia; four aunts and three uncles.
MRS. H.B. "DOT" ALLSUP
Real estate
MACON Services for Mrs. H.B. "Dot" Allsup will be held Friday at 10 a.m. at Macon Church of Christ with the Revs. Jean Thornton and Charles Cash officiating. Burial will be in Oddfellows Cemetery with Cockrell Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Allsup, 85, of Macon, died Tuesday, May 8, 2001, in her home.
Survivors include a daughter, Sybil Ann Byrd of Knoxville, Tenn.; three sons, Victor A. Allsup, Dewayne Allsup and Donald Allsup, all of Macon; three brothers, Nelson Shaul of Tuscaloosa, Ala., Dr. Cameron Shaul of Collierville, Tenn. and Charles "Chuck" Shaul of Aliceville, Ala.; 14 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, H. Brice Allsup.
The family requests memorials be made to Magnolia Bible College, P.O. Box 1109, Kosciusko, MS 39090 or Sunnybrook Children's Home Inc., P.O. Box 1497, Ridgeland, MS 39158.
Visitation will be today from 6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m. at the funeral home.
HELEN MARIE SMITH
Homemaker
BUTLER, Ala. Services for Helen Marie Smith will be held Friday at 2 p.m. at Bumpers Funeral Home Chapel with the Revs. Mike Smith and Ken Gibson officiating. Burial will be in Resthaven Memorial Gardens.
Mrs. Smith, 92, of Butler, died Wednesday, May 9, 2001, at Jeff Anderson Regional Medical Center.
Survivors include four daughters, Eloise Irby and Annette White, both of Butler, Norma Lee Riley of Quitman and Polly Bowen of West Virginia; four sons, James Smith of Meridian, L.C. Smith of Conroe, Texas, Robert Smith of Houston, Texas, and W.J. Smith of Friendswood, Texas; 21 grandchildren, 35 great-grandchildren and 18 great-great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, W.L. Smith.
Visitation will be today from 6 p.m.-8 p.m. at the funeral home.

Also on Franklin County Times
Watermelon Winners 2026
B: WATERMELON FESTIVAL, Franklin County
Griffin Traylor 
August 20, 2026
MOST UNUSUAL   First place: Lorena Bonilla (Russellville)     BEST DRESSED   First place: Aymar Bonilla (Russellville)   Second place: Candy Owens (La...
Byrd’s final song a fitting tribute
News, Russellville, Z - News Main
By Brady Petree 
August 19, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — When organizers landed country music star Tracy Byrd as the headline performer for the 45th annual Franklin County Watermelon Festival,...
Russellville graduate deported
Main, News, Russellville, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
August 19, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE – A 19-year-old Russellville High School graduate was deported from the United States on Aug. 9, according to the Department of Homeland ...
Locomotive gets new paint at Railroad Park
Main, News, Red Bay, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
August 19, 2026
RED BAY — The 1923 steam locomotive at the Railroad Park is getting a new paint job as work on a concrete pad, lighting and other features continues. ...
RMS kicks off character program
News, Russellville
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
August 19, 2026
RUSSSELLVILLE – Liberty Learning Foundation programs at Russellville Middle School now extend through all three grade levels with sixth graders studyi...
Major hire
High School Sports, Russellville Golden Tigers, Sports
RUSSELLVILLE GOLDEN TIGERS
RUSSELLVILLE LOOKS TO RIDE HIGGINS’ BOOST
By Matt St. Charles Sports Writer 
August 19, 2026
It was going to take a great opportunity for Darrell Higgins to leave Mars Hill at the end of last season. He’d been there for 10 years, coaching the ...
Obituaries
Obituaries
August 19, 2026
  John Wayne Terry Aug. 12, 2026   John Wayne Terry, 68, of Russellville, passed away Aug. 12. Visitation took place at Spry Memorial Chapel Aug. 18 f...
Still on the hunt
High School Sports, Red Bay Tigers, Sports
RED BAY TIGERS
By A. Stacy Long Sports Writer 
August 19, 2026
After enjoying a major year-over-year leap, Red Bay football instead took a step back over the offseason. Oh, my, boys basketball and baseball, what e...

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *