Archives
 By  Staff Reports Published 
12:05 pm Thursday, December 26, 2002

William Alva McClendon Jr.

By Staff
Retired business owner
NEWTON Services for William Alva "Bill" McClendon Jr. will be held Friday at 2 p.m. at First Baptist Church in Newton with the Revs. Dr. Frank Harmon and Dr. Leroy Brewer officiating. Burial will be in Newton County Memorial Gardens Cemetery. James F. Webb Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. McClendon, 81, of Newton, died Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2002, at Mississippi Veterans Nursing Home in Jackson.
He was a member of First Baptist Church and served in the U.S. Army during World War II. His family moved to Newton and purchased the Kraft Cheese plant from Kraft Foods, forming McClendon's Cheese Company. They purchased two other cheese plants and Ford's Ice Cream to form McClendon Dairy Products Corp.
He was a past president of the Mississippi Dairy Products Association, past interim mayor of Newton. He was a Rotarian and served as deacon of First Baptist Church in Newton.
Survivors include his son, W.D. "Billy" McClendon Sr. of Newton; a daughter, Donna M. Reddish of Jonesboro, Ga.; three sisters, Marilyn Adamson and Lucia McLeroy, both of Jonesboro, and Mitzi Sweetin of Atlanta; five grandchildren, Angelique Foster of Pine Mountain, Ga., Twila Hughes of Cummings, Ga., Dee Wallace of Stockbridge, Ga., W. David McClendon Jr. of Jackson and Carl Reddish of Jonesboro; and five great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents, William A. and Ethel McClendon; and his wife, Myrle B. McClendon.
Pallbearers will be members of the Berean Sunday School Class.
Visitation will be today 5:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m. at the funeral home.
Woodrow Horn
Retired
Services for Woodrow Horn will be held Friday at 2 p.m. at Little Hope Baptist Church in Toomsuba with the Rev. Lamar Smith officiating. Burial will be in Pleasant Grove Cemetery with Berry and Gardner Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Horn, 64, of Toomsuba, died Monday, Dec. 23, 2002, in his home.
Survivors include his sisters, Martha Alford, and Dorothy Morgan, both of Toomsuba, Earnestine Ray and Earlean Pittman, both of Biloxi.
He was preceded in death by his parents.
Visitation will be Friday one hour prior to the service at the church.
J.W. Parks
Retired Philadelphia police officer
PHILADELPHIA Services for J.W. Parks will be held Friday at 2 p.m. at McClain-Hays Funeral Service Chapel with the Revs. Stanley Barnett and Mark Cloys officiating. Burial will be in Cedarlawn Cemetery in Philadelphia.
Mr. Parks, 83, of Philadelphia, died Monday, Dec. 23, 2002, at Neshoba County General Hospital in Philadelphia. He was a veteran of World War II.
Survivors include his son, Rocky Parks of Philadelphia; one grandson; and his foster mother, Bill Parks of Philadelphia.
Visitation will be today 5 p.m.-9 p.m. at the funeral home.
James O. Gentry
Services for James O. Gentry will be held Friday at 2:30 p.m. at Barham Funeral Home Chapel. Burial will be in Meridian Memorial Park Cemetery.
Mr. Gentry, 78, of Meridian, died Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2002, at Jeff Anderson Regional Medical Center.
Visitation will be today 5 p.m.-8 p.m. at the funeral home.
… obituaries continue on News Pages

Also on Franklin County Times
Goodwin stepping down as Golden Tigers’ football coach
High School Sports, News, Russellville, ...
Kevin Taylor For the FCT 
January 9, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE – Dustin Goodwin, who served as athletic director and head football coach, announced he is resigning his position to seek other opportuni...
Dowdy sentencing delayed due to medical emergency
News, Russellville, Z - News Main
By Brady Petree For the FCT 
January 7, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — The sentencing of Brandy Dowdy will have to wait until another day after her defense attorney suffered a “medical emergency” on Tuesday...
Legislative session opens Jan. 13; Kiel prefiles 2 bills
Main, News, Russellville, ...
By Addi Broadfoot For the FCT 
January 7, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE -- State Rep. Jamie Kiel has prefiled two bills ahead of the 2026 Alabama legislative session. The bills, which will be considered when l...
Hollimon reflects on 40 years in education
Main, News, Russellville, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
January 7, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE – Dr. Deanna Hollimon always felt she was called to be an educator. After 40 years as a teacher, reading coach, administrator and educati...
Firefighters train for vehicle rescues
News, Russellville, Z - News Main
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
January 7, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — City firefighters trained last week on how to stabilize overturned vehicles and remove trapped occupants. Fire Chief Joe Mansell said t...
Neighbors helping neighbors, one soda pop tab at a time
Columnists, Opinion
HERE AND NOW
January 7, 2026
Most people don’t think twice about the small aluminum tab on top of a soda can. But those tiny pieces of metal have quietly helped families stay clos...
2025: A year of results for Alabama families
Columnists, Opinion
January 7, 2026
The past year has certainly been a memorable one — and, more importantly, a rewarding one. Beginning the year by leading the Laken Riley Act through t...
Author’s collapse was motivation for comeback
News
Chelsea Retherford For the FCT 
January 7, 2026
When Pete Key collapsed on the bathroom floor in 2024, it didn’t feel like a turning point. It felt like an ending. He had been sick for days — dehydr...

Leave a Reply

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