Archives
 By  Staff Reports Published 
4:12 am Thursday, May 22, 2003

Obituaries for Thursday, May 22, 2003

By Staff
J.C. Penney Company employee
Services for Polly Hooks will be held Saturday at 2 p.m. at Mt. Olive Baptist Church on 49th Avenue with the Rev. Dr. Zachary Operton officiating. Burial will be in Okatibee Cemetery. Berry and Gardner Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Hooks, 49, of Meridian, died Friday, May 16, 2003, at the University Medical Center in Jackson. She graduated from the Meridian Public Schools and attended Neely Business College and Meridian Junior College now Meridian Community College. She worked as the personnel and training manager for more than 27 years at J.C. Penney.
She accepted Christ as her personal savior and was baptized into the fellowship of Okatibee Missionary Baptist Church. She later joined Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church.
Survivors include her husband, Bobby L. Hooks; son, Kevin T. Dubose; daughter, Brittany L. Hooks; sisters, Gloria Hardy of Yonkers, N.Y., Holly Dubose-Conley of Birmingham, Ala. and Wilhemina Bloodsaw of Walnut Grove; a brother-in-law, Malcolm Hardy of Yonkers, N.Y. an uncle, Charlie Dubose; aunts, Evia Whitlock of Meridian, and Everlina Burns and her husband, Jimmy, of Chicago; and several nieces, nephews, cousins, adopted mother, Ruth Jackson and special friends, Alice Manuel, Mary Ann Wade, Eunice Dillard, Tijuana Griffin, and Pamela Smith; a godson, JaCaleb Smith, and neighbors and her J.C. Penney employees family.
Visitation will be Friday, 5:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m. at the funeral home.
Retired cook at Rush Foundation Hospital
Services for Annie Matt Johnson Morton will be held today at 11 a.m. at Enterprise Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Jimmy Johnson officiating. Burial will be in Good Hope Cemetery in Russell.
Mrs. Morton, 88, of Meridian, died Sunday, May 18, 2003, at Riley Hospital.
Survivors include her son, Cecil Morton Jr. and his wife, Dinah, of Meridian; three grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Cecil Morton Sr.; her parents and 18 brothers and sisters.
Lauderdale County employee
Services for William Ray Abston will be held Friday at 10 a.m. at James F. Webb Funeral Home Chapel with the Revs. Sundra Girard and Melvin Boles officiating. Burial will be in Archusa Cemetery.
Mr. Abston, 71, of Meridian, died Wednesday, May 21, 2003.
Survivors include his wife, Alma Cooper Abston; a daughter, Penny Thrash and her husband, David; grandchildren, Wesley Thrash, Joshua Thrash, Brittney Thrash; great-grandchildren, Michael Kade Thrash, Michael Scott Wood Jr.; and a brother, Thomas Abston and his wife, Willodean.
Visitation will be today 5 p.m.-8 p.m. at the funeral home.
Homemaker
Services for Faye Ellen Harper will be held Friday at 10 a.m. at Barham Funeral Home Chapel with the Revs. Travis McManus and Frank Dodson officiating. Burial will be in Forest Lawn Cemetery.
Mrs. Harper, 58, of Dalewood, died Wednesday, May 21, 2003, in her home.
Survivors include her husband, Talmadge Harper of Dalewood; daughters, Tina Thompson of Panama City, Fla., Karen Odom and her husband Greg Kelso, and Tracy White and her husband, Thomas, all of Dalewood; step-father, Bill Jackson of Dalewood; brother, David Jackson of Meridian; six grandchildren; two great-grandchildren and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.
She was preceded in death by her mother, Stella Marie Jackson, her father, Mennon Whittington and a brother, Bobby Eugene Whittington.
Pallbearers will be James Stanton, Eric Odom, Jeremy Odom, Jamie Stanton, Thomas White, and Brad Whittington.
Visitation will be today 5 p.m.-8 p.m. at the funeral home.

Also on Franklin County Times
State rankings | Red Bay rises, hits first poll since 2020
High School Sports, Red Bay Tigers, Sports
By A. Stacy Long For the FCT 
October 29, 2025
Red Bay has pulled into the state rankings for the first time in five years. The Tigers are 10th in the latest Alabama Sports Writers Association Clas...
Principals honored by city’s school board
Main, News, Russellville, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
October 29, 2025
RUSSELLVILLE — The City Schools Board of Education recognized the system’s principals during its Oct. 21 meeting. Superintendent Dr. Tim Guinn describ...
Rickman: ‘I don’t sweat the small stuff anymore’
Main, News, Z - News Main
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
October 29, 2025
TUSCUMBIA — When Carrie Rickman felt something unusual during a routine self-check in June 2018, she trusted her instincts. “I was just taking a showe...
Cultura Garden Club hosts district meeting
Columnists, Opinion
HERE AND NOW
October 29, 2025
The Cultura Garden Club hosted the Garden Clubs of Alabama District 1 meeting at North Highlands Church of Christ. The theme of the meeting was “Roots...
Medicare Advantage helps preserve choice for seniors
Columnists, Opinion
October 29, 2025
In every corner of Alabama, one concern comes up repeatedly with family health care. Seniors worry about keeping it affordable. People with disabiliti...
Honoring his mother on Día de los Muertos
News, Russellville
Chelsea Retherford For the FCT 
October 29, 2025
RUSSELLVILLE — When José Figueroa-Cifuentes lights a candle, he’s not just illuminating a wick — he’s keeping his mother’s legacy alive. A signature l...
Students respond to lure of competitive fishing
Belgreen Bulldogs, Phil Campbell Bobcats, Red Bay Tigers, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
October 29, 2025
RUSSELLVILLE — A new countywide fishing team is giving more Franklin County students the chance to cast a line and compete. The Franklin County Angler...
UNA can’t figure out how to win on the road
Sports
David Glovach For the FCT 
October 29, 2025
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — The setting was different — the town, the stadium, the opposing team. The scene facing North Alabama, however, was the same leavi...

Leave a Reply

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