Archives
 By  Staff Reports Published 
7:16 pm Tuesday, July 10, 2001

OBITUARIES FOR TUESDAY, JULY 10, 2001

By Staff
Other survivors include a brother, Oliver G. Thomas and his wife, Sina, of Newton; three sisters-in-law, Mary Etta Coker of Satsuma, Ala., Annie Coker Hill of Spanish Fort, Ala., and Helen Moore of Ellisville; seven step-grandchildren and their spouses, Cynda Gibbon Barfield and Whit Barfield of Baton Rouge, Rita Gibbon of Birmingham, Cheryl Gibbon DuBose and Phillip DuBose of Collierville, Tenn., Keith and Judy Gibbon of Newton, Roger Estes, Gaylon Estes and Durwin Estes, all of Nashville; a step-daughter-in-law by marriage, Sandra Gibbon (widow of Bryan Gibbon) of the Hero Community; and her step-great-grandchildren, Tamilia Gibbon Godwin and her husband, Roger, of Newton, Kerry Gibbon Hutchinson and her husband, Matt, of Meridian, Stephanie Gibbon Brown and her husband, Eric, of Mendenhall, Brandon and Cameron Estes of Nashville, Trea Barfield of Baton Rouge, Matt and Seth Gibbon of Newton and Wayne and Amy Johnson of Brandon.
Nieces and their families include, June Dale Thomas Jones and her husband, J.T. Jones Jr., of Ellisville, Betty Jean Thomas Kruk of Carson City, Nev. and Patsy Rainer Holtz of Heber Springs, Ark.
Nephews and their families include, Pepper Thomas and his wife, Juanita, of Oxford, Milton Thomas and his wife, Patsy, of Jackson, Clarence Rainer and his wife, Bessie, of Columbus, Texas, Johnny Rainer of Wharton, Texas, and Jimmy Rainer and Linda Rainer of Phoenix, Ariz. Several cousins in the Newton area and other areas of Mississippi also survive her.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her first husband, Luther Hamilton Hopkins; her second husband, Otho Coker; a brother, James Wesley Thomas; a sister, Colleen Thomas Rainer; her step-son-in-law, Billy Estes; a step-grandson, Bryan Gibbon; a sister-in-law, Imogene Thomas; a nephew, Hopper Thomas; and a nephew by marriage, Leonard Kruk.
Pallbearers will be Milton T. Thomas, Clarence Rainer, David Jones, Johnny Rainer, Pepper Thomas and Jeff Rainer.
Honorary pallbearers will be J.T. Jones Jr., Billy Gibbon, Keith Gibbon, Durwin Estes, Gaylon Estes and Hillard Thomas.
Visitation will be Wednesday from 5 p.m.-7 p.m. at the funeral home and one hour prior to the service on Thursday.
JOSEPH LLOYD GREGG JR.
Retired plastics engineer
Services for Joseph Lloyd Gregg Jr. will be held Thursday at 2:30 p.m. at Biloxi National Cemetery with a Navy Chaplain officiating. Stephens Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Gregg, 81, of Lauderdale, died Saturday, July 7, 2001, at Rush Foundation Hospital. He was a Pearl Harbor survivor, serving aboard the USS Farragut. He participated in the first Doolittle Raid in World War II.
Survivors include his wife, Dolores Cole Gregg of Lauderdale; six sons, David Heisey and his wife, Patricia, of Lauderdale, James Lloyd Gregg of Seattle, Wash., Glenn Heisey of Wooddale, Ill., Daniel Heisey of Florida, Jeffrey Allen Gregg of Kalamazoo, Mich. and Christopher Coats Heisey of Hendersonville, N.C.; grandchildren, Adrianne Heisey, Robert Lloyd Heisey, Courtney Lynn Gregg, Sarah Brown, Sabrina Brown Moore, Joseph Brown, Darren Heisey, Danay Heisey, Krista O'Roake, Michelle Gregg and Mitchell Gregg; a sister, Bette Lou Wehmeyer of Dayton, Ohio; and seven great-grandchildren.
Pallbearers will be Navy personnel.
Visitation will be Wednesday from 5 p.m.-7 p.m. at the funeral home.
JANIS L. BOSTON
Retired State of Mississippi employee
Services for Janis L. "Blue Eyes" Boston will be held Friday at 1 p.m. at Berry and Gardner Funeral Home with the Rev. W.C. Brown officiating. Burial will be in Daleville Cemetery with Berry and Gardner Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Boston, 48, of Meridian, died Friday, July 6, 2001, at Jeff Anderson Regional Medical Center.
Survivors include her husband, Carl W. Boston, two daughters, Melanye Boston and Carla Michelle Boston, her mother, Nazie Williams, and her stepfather, the Rev. L.V. Williams, all of Meridian; two sisters, Vettys Lofton of Toomsuba and Katie Wilson of Meridian; a brother, Robert Barfield Sr. of Hattiesburg; and a grandson.
Visitation will be Thursday from 7 p.m.-8 p.m. at the funeral home.
VALLEY CHAPMAN
Arrangements were incomplete at Berry and Gardner Funeral Home for Valley Chapman, of Enterprise, who died Monday, July 9, 2001, in his home.
NINA B. BOOKER
Arrangements were incomplete at James F. Webb Funeral Home for Nina B. Booker, 97, of Meridian, who died Monday, July 9, 2001, at Queen City Nursing Center.
DENNIS HAYES JR.
Arrangements were incomplete at Clark's Memorial Funeral Home for Dennis Hayes Jr., 65, of Meridian, who died Monday, July 9, 2001, at Oakwood Home for the Elderly in Bastrop, La.
NANCY COOPER
Arrangements were incomplete at James F. Webb Funeral Home for Nancy Cooper, 70, of Jackson, who died Tuesday, July 10, 2001, at Guardian Angel Hospice.

Also on Franklin County Times
Walk Thru Bethlehem captures Christmas story
Main, News, Russellville, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
December 10, 2025
RUSSELLVILLE — Russellville First Baptist Church’s annual Walk Thru Bethlehem over the weekend transformed two downtown blocks into a first-century se...
Use of force: ‘It’s a split-second decision’
Main, News, Russellville, ...
By Kevin Taylor For the Franklin County Times 
December 10, 2025
RUSSELLVILLE –Before each shift at the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, supervisors will always talk about officer safety. They talk about incidents ...
Tree lighting ceremony draws crowd in Red Bay
News, Red Bay
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
December 10, 2025
RED BAY — Members of the community gathered downtown Nov. 30 for the annual tree lighting ceremony, which brought students, local organizers and famil...
Rideshare drivers should be able to understand English
Columnists, Opinion
December 10, 2025
When I was in college, if we needed a ride, we would either call a friend or walk home. These days, however, millions of Americans rely on rideshare s...
‘Roxy’s Christmas Spectacular’ gets ready to take stage
Columnists, News, Opinion
HERE AND NOW
December 10, 2025
By Susie Hovater Malone Columnist The Roxy’s Christmas Spectacular does more than bring holiday joy to the stage each December. It unites our communit...
Golden Tigers split contests with Belgreen
High School Sports, Russellville Golden Tigers, Sports
Brannon King For the FCT 
December 10, 2025
The Russellville Golden Tigers visited the Belgreen Bulldogs and each school picked up a win. Russellville’s girls defeated Belgreen by a final score ...
PC Lady Bobcats win 3 games
High School Sports, Phil Campbell Bobcats, Sports
Bart Moss For the FCT 
December 10, 2025
Phil Campbell picked up three wins this week beating Shoals Christian 49-34, Cherokee 55-21 and Lexington 52-41. In the Shoals Christian win Phil Camp...
Romero makes triumphant return to stage
News, Phil Campbell
Chelsea Retherford For the FCT 
December 10, 2025
PHIL CAMPBELL — When Jonathon Romero first walked out as Sweeney Todd during the show’s opening weekend, it marked a triumphant return to the stage af...

Leave a Reply

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