Obituaries 4/22/16

Published 12:00 am Friday, April 22, 2016

OAKLAND––Leon Braswell died Wednesday, April 13, 2016, at his residence.
Services were held Saturday, April 16 ay Hosanna Family Worship Center in Pope. Burial was held in Long Creek Cemetery. Rev. Rayford Ables officiated. Wells Funeral Home had charge.
Braswell, born Sept. 9, 1931, to the late Braswell and Dovie Braswell in Forrest City, Ark., was a welder, sawmill worker and farmer.
He was a member of the Joy Club and Hosanna Worship Center.

COMO––Rick Downs Gant, 76, died Tuesday, April 19, 2016 at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis.
He was born in Oxford, MS on March 16, 1940. He was retired from Mississippi National Guard and was a respiratory therapist.  Mr. Gant is survived by two sons, Jeff Gant and Wade Gant of Pope; one sister, Erma Jenkins of Sardis, and three grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Clarey Dell Smith Gant and Clifton Gant and one brother, Joe Gant.  
The family will announce a memorial service at a later date.

Mrs. Ouida L. Kennedy, age 78, passed away Tuesday April 19, 2016 at Quitman Co. Hospital in Marks. The family will receive friends on Friday April 22, 2016 at Peach Creek Baptist Church in Pleasant Grove, MS from 11:00 am until service time at 1:00 pm. Interment will follow in Peach Creek Cemetery.
Mrs. Kennedy was a retired factory worker for Hygene in Sardis, MS.
Mrs. Kennedy is survived by her son Albert (Myra) Kennedy of Charleston, MS., twin sister Freida (Jack) Kennedy of Pleasant Grove, MS., brothers Roger (Donna) Stevens of Pleasant Grove, MS. & Larry Stevens of Sardis, MS. Five grandchildren and Four Great Grandchildren also survive Mrs. Kennedy. She was preceded in death by her husband, Albert H. Kennedy, parents John & Gladys Stevens, sister Lottie Lantrip and brothers Calvin, Lynn, Andy & J.W. Stevens.
Memorial contributions may be made to: Peach Creek Baptist Church, 3107 Parks Place Rd.Como, MS. 38619

SARDIS––Terry “Skipper” Kimmons, 58, died April 15, 2016, at North Delta Hospice in Southaven.
Services will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at Cooley’s Mortuary in Batesville. Visitation will be held 1 p.m. – 6 p.m. at Cooley’s Mortuary. Dr. Ethel Scurlock will officiate. Cooley’s Mortuary has charge.
Kimmons, born Nov. 21, 1957, in Sardis, to Doc Kimmons and Carlean Blackmon, was a membere of Alvis Grove Church in Oakland.

Virginia Richardson, 83, died Friday, April 14, 2016, in Memphis.
Services were held Saturday, April 16 at Wells Funeral Home. Burial was in Forrest Memorial Park Cemetery. Wells Funeral Home had charge.
Richardson, born Sept. 4, 1932, in Batesville, to the late Charlie Rodgers and Lucille Walls Rodgers, was a homemaker and was a member of Goodwill Church of God.

SARDIS––Jasper Toliver, 70, died Thursday, April 14, 2016, at Merit Health in Batesville.
Services will be held at 1 p.m. on Saturday at Pleasant Green M.B. Church in Sardis.Visitation will be held Friday 1 p.m. – 6 p.m. at Eddie Robinson Funeral Home and Saturday noon – 1 p.m. at Pleasant Green M.B. Church in Sardis.
Pastor W.O. McKinney will officiate. Brial will be in Pleasant Green Cemetery in Sardis. Eddie Robinson Funeral Home has charge.
Toliver, born Nov. 24, 1945, in Sardis, to Alolph Toliver and Sarah Dean Toliver, was a heavy equipment operator for Panola County and was a member of Pleasant Green M.B. Church in Sardis.

The world lost a special person on April 18, 2016. In the early hours of the morning, Thomas Albert Florence, Jr., age 66 (Batesville, MS), died from natural causes, leaving behind a legacy of love and a strong family faith that will impact generations to come.

Tommy, or Hoss as he was known as by his close friends and relatives, was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and, most of all, follower of Jesus Christ. His contagious, fun-loving personality brought laughter and smiles to everyone he was around, including his beloved dog, Griz.

Tommy was a hard-working man, and one of God’s stewards of the land and people. He strongly believed it was his responsibility to leave this world a better place for those behind him, and that is exactly what he did. He applied this principle and Christian values to every aspect of his life – whether cultivating crops, training horses, coaching grandchildren, or teaching Sunday School.

Tommy was born on November 15, 1949, to the late Thomas Albert Florence, Sr. and Rosa Leigh Pou Florence of Pope, Mississippi, graduating from South Panola High School in 1968 and Mississippi State University in 1972. He is survived by his wife of 41 years, Amy Stone Florence of Batesville, Mississippi, and his sister, Margaret Barnhart (Keith) of Atalissa, Iowa. He also leaves behind three children – Eve Sprouse (Brian) and  Kate Pope (Chris) of Pope, Mississippi, and Will Florence of Grove Hill, Alabama – and five grandchildren – Hannah Grace Sprouse, Rosa Lee Sprouse, Elijah Pope, Luke Pope , and Joy Pope.

Visitation will be held Saturday, April 23 at Pope Baptist Church from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. The funeral will be at 2 p.m. Friends and family are welcome. The family requests memorials be given to the Pope Baptist Church Building Fund.

ENID––Shirley Marie Hall, 69, died April 20, 2016, in Southaven.

Services will be held Saturday at 1 p.m. at Willow Springs Assembly of God Church, 3966 Pope-Crowder Rd., Enid. Visitation will be held from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. Burial will be held at Bethel Cemetery in Teasdale. Brantley Phillips Funeral Home in Hernando has charge of arrangements.

Mrs. Hall was an LPN.

Full obituary information will be in Tuesday’s edition of The Panolian.