Archives
 By  Staff Reports Published 
2:44 am Thursday, November 21, 2002

VIOLA TURNAGE MITCHELL

By Staff
Retired school teacher
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. Memorial services for Viola "DeeDea" Turnage Mitchell will be held Friday at 3 p.m. at McDonald Road Seventh-Day Adventist Church with the Rev. Don Crook officiating. Burial will be in Collegedale Cemetery. Heritage Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Turnage, 74, of McDonald, Tenn., formerly of Chunky, died Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2002, in her home.
Survivors include her husband of more than 52 years, Alfred Mitchell of McDonald; a son, Kelvin Mitchell of McDonald; daughters, Renita McDougal and her husband, Todd, of Hendersville, N.C., and Daina Spears and her husband, David, of Ringgold, Ga.; sisters, Martha Turnage Rogers and her husband, Jackie, of Auburn, Ala., and Billie Turnage Caudill of Chunky; granddaughters, Rochelle and Megan Spears of Ringgold; several nieces, nephews and great-nieces.
Memorials may be made to Southern Adventist University, P.O. Box 370, Collegedale, TN 37315.
Visitation will be today 4 p.m.-7 p.m. at the funeral home.
Herman L. Hawkins
Retired
Services for Herman L. "Hap" Hawkins will be held Friday at 7 p.m. at Stephens Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Keith Grubbs officiating. Burial will be in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Cypress, Calif., on Dec. 6.
Mr. Hawkins, 74, of Meridian, died Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2002, at Heartfelt Hospice. He was a retired aircraft electrician and a Wal-Mart greeter. Mr. Hawkins was a flight test technician and his crew built the first DC10 aircraft. He served in the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Marines.
Survivors include his daughter and her partner, Margaret Ann Hawkins and Juliann Anderson, both of Riverside, Calif.; two brothers, D.D. Hawkins and his wife, Gloria, of Meridian, and Edward Hawkins and his wife, Wilda, of Mobile, Ala.; several nieces and nephews.
MYRTLE MCCOY
Retired Kemper County school teacher
Services for Myrtle McCoy will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at St. Peter United Methodist Church in Marion with the Rev. Kevin Carter officiating. Burial will be in Daleville Cemetery. Berry and Gardner Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. McCoy, 73, of Marion, died Monday, Nov. 18, 2002, at University Medical Center in Jackson.
Survivors include her daughter, Jacqueline Gray of Marion; two sisters, Clara Clark of Meridian and Nora Love of Oakland, Calif.; a brother, Arthur Lee Love of Los Angeles; three grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband and parents.
Visitation will be Saturday one hour prior to the service of the church.
LILLIAN HOPKINS
Homemaker
Services for Lillian Hopkins will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at New Prospect Baptist Church in Savoy with the Revs. Bennie Hopkins and Matthew Terrell officiating. Burial will be in New Prospect Cemetery with Berry and Gardner Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Hopkins, 91, of Meridian, died Monday, Nov. 18, 2002, at Rush Foundation Hospital.
Survivors include her daughters, Letha M. Walker and Dorothy Amos and her husband, Ben, all of Meridian, and Mary Alice Boyd of Cincinnati; sons, the Rev. Bennie Hopkins and his wife, Mary, of Meridian, Jimmy Hopkins of Hattiesburg and Harold Hopkins of Dallas, Texas; 23 grandchildren and 33 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband and a son.
Visitation will be Friday 5:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m. at the funeral home and Saturday one hour prior to the service at the church.
JIMMIE LEE COLE
Services for Jimmie Lee Cole will be held at East Meridian Community Center at 1 p.m. with the W.R. Clark officiating. Burial will be in Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Yantly,Ala. James L. Osby Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Cole, 55, of Meridian, died Monday, Nov. 18, 2002, at Jeff Anderson Regional Medical Center.
Survivors include his daughters, Jennett Walker of Meridian, Jimmie Cole and her husband, Charles of Las Vegas, Lawonda Cole of Pasadena,Calif., Catonya Cole, and Latrice Cole, both of Hathorn, Calif.; his mother, Mildred Johnson of Meridian; sisters, Rose Mary Hopson and her husband, Early B., Linda Henderson, Jessie Bell Chaney, Millie Wilkerson and her husband,Jerry, Linda Faye Chaney, all of Meridian, Arnitha Chaney, Diann Dunnigan and her husband, Frank, of Marion; brothers, John Chaney and his wife, Linda, and Larry Dell Chaney and his wife, Arlene, all of Meridian.
Visitation will be in the East Meridian Community Center Friday 5 p.m.- 7 p.m.
BETTIE MOSLEY
Homemaker
Services for Bettie Mosley will be held Saturday at 2 p.m. at Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Lauderdale with the Rev. Tony Hubbard officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Berry and Gardner Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Ms. Mosley, 64, of Lauderdale, died Thursday, Nov. 14, 2002, at Riley Hospital.
Survivors include her daughter, Dollie Bell and her husband, George Jr., a sister, Eddie J. Naylor, all of Lauderdale; a brother, George Mosley of Chicago; and a god son, Keotis D. Reed of Lauderdale.
Visitation will be Friday 7 p.m.-8 p.m. at the funeral home.
MABEL P. MCNEILL
Arrangements were incomplete at James F. Webb Funeral Home for Mabel P. McNeill, 92, of Meridian, who died Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2002, at Queen City Nursing 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 *