Archives
 By  Staff Reports Published 
1:03 pm Friday, July 23, 2004

Obituaries for Friday, July 23, 2004

By Staff
Homemaker
Services for Anita W. "Nita" Ivy will be held Saturday at 1:30 p.m. at James F. Webb Funeral Home Chapel with Rev. Nick Holden officiating. Burial will be in Oak Grove Cemetery.
Mrs. Ivy, 77, of Meridian, died Wednesday, July 21, 2004, at Jeff Anderson Regional Medical Center.
Survivors include her daughters, Jean Alawine of Meridian and Carol Crider and her husband Ryland of Jacksonville, Fla.; sisters, Eloise Whitehead, Frances Thomley and Ernestine Milstead and her husband Tommy; six grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, George T. Ivy and a granddaughter, Jeannie Alawine.
Pallbearers will be her grandsons and great-grandsons.
Visitation will be today from 5 p.m.-8 p.m. at the funeral home.
Retired business owner
MACON Services for Jessis B. Naylor will be held Saturday at 2 p.m. at Calvery Baptist Church, with Dr. W.I. Clark officiating. Burial will be in Martin Cemetery in Shuqualak. Lee-Sykes Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Naylor, 78, of Shuqualak, died Thursday, July 15, 2004, at Noxubee General Hospital in Macon. She joined Old Shiloh Baptist Church in Shuqualak, and later joined New Shiloh Baptist Church. She served faithfully as a dedicated usher and member of both churches.
Survivors include her daughters, Josephine Horne and Brenda Landford, both of Shuqualak, Geneva Knox of Detroit and Doris Close of Meridian; sons, Ramsey Naylor Jr. and Larry Naylor, both of Shuqualak; a brother, Eugene Hawston; 24 grandchildren; 30 great-grandchildren; and two God-daughters, Mamie Turner and Daisy Stewart.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Alex Harris and Valdonia Hawston.
Pallbearers will be Larry Bester, Leon McClendon, Roy Franklin, William Nave, Deacon Hal Jenkins and Minister Robert Prince.
Visitation will be today from noon-7 p.m. at the funeral home.
Services for Vanessa Speed Cottles will be held Saturday at 2:30 p.m. at Barham Funeral Home Chapel, with the Rev. Jeff Meadows officiating. Burial will be in Macedonia Baptist Church Cemetery.
Ms. Cottles, 28, of Mountain City, Tenn., died Wednesday, July 21, 2004, at Johnson City Medical Center in Johnson City, Tenn. She attended West Lauderdale High School and was a member of First Assembly of God Church in Mountain City. She loved singing Gospel music and horseback riding.
Survivors include her sons, Dustin Cottles and Hunter Cottles, both of Meridian; her father, Jimmy Speed and his wife Vickie of Meridian; her mother, Susan Powell and her husband Donnie of Johnson City; brothers, Jim Speed of Mountain City, Steven Speed of Biloxi and Robert Speed of Indiana; stepbrothers, Justin Speed and Jacob Speed, both of Meridian; her paternal grandmother, Barbara Speed of Enterprise; stepgrandparents, Bill and Peggy Boatner of Meridian and Jim and Maxine Castle of Collinsville; a special friend, Jammie Phillp of Mountain City and several aunts and uncles.
Visitation will be today from 5 p.m.-8 p.m. at the funeral home.
Retired
Services for Charles Calvin Vanaman will be held at a later date. Stephens Funeral Home is in charge of local arrangements. Thompson-Wilson Funeral Home in Wynne, Ark., is in charge of other arrangements.
Mr. Vanaman, 65, of Meridian, died Thursday, July 22, 2004, in his home. He was a retired superintendent of road and bridge construction.
Survivors include his wife, Glenda Brown Vanaman of Meridian; sons, Tommy Vanaman and his wife, Jennifer, of Beebe, Ark., and Chip Vanaman of Meridian; a daughter, Bliss May and her husband, James, of Meridian; his mother, Liberty Bond Vanaman of Wynne, Ark., and a sister, Jean McClanahan and her husband, Ken, and six grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his father, Clifton Calvin Vanaman.

Also on Franklin County Times
Suspect’s boyfriend held without bond
Main, News, Russellville, ...
By Brady Petree For the FCT 
May 6, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — A 26-year-old Georgia man charged with dozens of counts ranging from sodomy to producing and disseminating child pornography will remai...
Judge grants attorney’s request to withdraw
Main, News, Russellville, ...
By Brady Petree For the FCT 
May 6, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — Brandy Dowdy’s original attorney will no longer be part of her case moving forward. Birmingham-based attorney Jessica Bugge filed a mot...
Vina spends $50K to upgrade park
Franklin County, Main, News, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
May 6, 2026
VINA — Mayor Sue Raper said concerns about deteriorating playground equipment at the park helped spark a broader effort to improve and beautify the to...
Higgins celebrates 100th birthday
News, Russellville
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
May 6, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — Eunice Greenhill Higgins celebrated her 100th birthday April 26 with a gathering of more than 70 relatives, friends and others at the F...
Vets clean park at county archives
News, Russellville
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
May 6, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — Members of VFW Post 5184 gathered Saturday at the Franklin County Archives to clean the Veterans Park located outside the building. Cle...
State’s outdoors is key to economic growth
Columnists, Opinion
May 6, 2026
From the mountains of the Tennessee Valley to the shores of the Gulf Coast, and everything inbetween, our state is second to none in the country when ...
Book Lovers Club honored at state
News, Russellville
HERE AND NOW
May 6, 2026
Members of Russellville’s GFWC Book Lovers Study Club joined clubwomen from across Alabama for the 131st annual GFWC Alabama Federation of Women’s Clu...
Picking strawberries, making memories
News, Russellville
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
May 6, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — A pick-your-own strawberry patch run by Jerri Ann Oliver draws visitors from across the area each season. Oliver said she started the p...

Leave a Reply

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