Howard C. Eidson

Howard C. Eidson, 93, Fayetteville, died Sept. 9, 2003. He was born April 10, 1910 in Fulton County. He was retired from The Atlanta Journal Constitution newspaper with 30 years of service. Services were at the Parrott Funeral Home chapel with the Rev. Ferrell Dowdey officiating. Interment was at Holly Hill Memorial Park, Fairburn. Survivors include sons, Edward W. and Jo Eidson, Spring Hill, Fla., Thearon and Iris Eidson, and David and Bobbie Eidson, all of Conyers, Tim and Deborah Eidson, Easley, S. C., and James A. and Dianne Eidson, Atlanta; a daughter, Wilthea and Stan Rainwater, McDonough; brother, John Eidson, Union City, and Herman Eidson, Roanoke, Ala.; sisters, Cornelia Croker, and

Mary Murphy, both of Union City; 15 grandchildren; 17 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren. Parrott Funeral Home, Fairburn, was in charge.

Vernon Gray Woods

Vernon Gray Woods. 83, Brooks, died Sept. 11, 2003. He was born Dec. 12, 1919 in Brooks, the son of James Benjamin and Elizabeth Lois Jones Woods. He was the 5th of seven children. He is the paternal grandson of John Clark and Nancy Margaret Moody Woods, and the maternal grandson of James Harp and Elizabeth Lee Posey Jones. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Ruth Von Strobel Woods in 1959 and his second wife, Ima Otwell Woods in 2001. In 1935 he enrolled at the University of Georgia but World War II brought him into the United States Army Air Corps. A heart problem prevented him from flying, and he studied map-making. He served in that capacity for the Flying Tigers. After the war he

finished his education, with a major in agricultural engineering and minors in electrical engineering, machine design and hydraulics. He returned to

Brooks, farming over 1,000 acres, raising beef cattle and operating the largest independent poultry enterprise in Georgia. He served on the Brooks town council from 1965 to 1988. Services were at the Brooks Christian Church, where he was a lifelong member, with the Rev. Dr. Roger Sizemore and the Rev. George Dillard officiating. Interment was at the Brooks Memorial Cemetery, which he helped establish. Survivors include a son, Von and Sandra G. Woods, Peachtree City; a daughter, Cathy Jane Woods, Brooks; a grandson, Eric von Strobel Woods, Peachtree City; brothers, James Woods, Atlanta, and John Posey Woods, Cashiers, N. C.; and sisters, Evelyn McKemie, and Martha Glisson, both of Atlanta. Memorial

donations may be made to the Brooks Christian Church. Carl J. Mowell & Son Funeral Home, Peachtree City, was in charge.

Claude Esric Lee

Claude Esric Lee, 81, Fayetteville, died Sept. 11, 2003. He was born April 11, 1922 in Fayette County, the son of John Oma and Effie Jones Lee. He served in the United States Air Force in World War II, and was in the thick of serious fighting. After the war, he entered the University of Georgia, with his boyhood friend, Vernon Woods. Lee majored in civil engineering. He followed in the footsteps of his father, and was a surveyor in Fayette County all his life. He was a lifelong member of Friendship United Methodist Church. He was a member of a Masonic Lodge in Riverdale, and was awarded his 50-year membership pin. Services were at the Carl J. Mowell chapel with the Rev. Thurman Slusser and the Rev. Chuck Hodges officiating. Interment was at the Friendship United Methodist Church cemetery. Survivors include his wife, Marguerite Thompson Lee, Fayetteville; a son, Joe Esric and Donna Lee, Fayetteville; daughters, Suzanne and Mack Johnson, and Dixie Lee and Tam Bunnell, all of Fayetteville; seven grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and a sister, Louise and Edward Knowles, Fayetteville. Carl J. Mowell & Son Funeral Home, Fayetteville, was in charge.

Addie Butler Oakley

Addie Butler Oakley, 92, Fayetteville, died Sept. 13, 2003. She was born Dec. 28, 1910 in Fayette County, the daughter of Rufus and Arrie Thornton Butler. She was preceded in death by her husband of 67 years, Dewitt Oakley, and brothers, Merrill Butler, and Marvin Butler. She was a member of the Woolsey Baptist Church. Services were at the Carl J. Mowell chapel with the Rev. Chuck Chambers officiating. Interment was at Camp Memorial Park, Fayetteville. Survivors include children, Anne and John Drake, Abner and Claudine Oakley, Alan and Jan Oakley, Arleen and Dan Palmer, and Audrey and Charles Warr; grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, Aurelia and Jim Wood, Michael Wood, Charley Wood, Becky and David Carlson, Bonnie Cash, Mac Cash, Sid and Jeri Drake, Adam Drake, William Drake, Deborah and Doug Buckner, Nathan and Erin McDade, Britt McDade, Alise Buckner, Ayla Buckner, Kevin Oakley, Matthew Oakley, Erin Oakley, Melissa Oakley Dowd, and Cary Dowd, Brad Mock, Trent Dowd, Amanda Warr, Valerie Warr, and Brian Warr; sisters, Hazel Davenport, Frances Phillips, Ida Belle Jackson, Evelyn Phillips, Dot and Dorin Milam, Jean and Harold Mitchell, and Charlotte and Lester Bray; a brother, Everett and Bettye Butler; and sisters-in-law, Pauline Butler, Ruby O. Thompson, and Lillian Oakley. Memorial donations may be made to the Portsbridge Hospice, 115 Huntington Park Drive, Fayetteville, GA 30214. Carl J. Mowell & Son Funeral Home, Fayetteville, was in charge.

Shelly Ann Smits

Shelly Ann Smits, 15, Fayetteville, died Sept. 13, 2003. She was born June 14, 1988 in Mobile, Ala. She had been a cheerleader for the Blue Devils football team, and was a sophomore at Sandy Creek High School, where she was on the dance team. Services were at the Fayette Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Garrett Hoffman officiating. Interment was at Camp Memorial Park, Fayetteville. Survivors include her parents, Mark and Rhonda Smits, Fayetteville; a brother, Mark Smits II, Fayetteville; a sister, Shannon Smits, Fayetteville; and grandparents, Phil and Edith Smith, Mobile, Ala., Ronnie and Phyllis Barrett, Mobile, Ala., and Peter Smith, Chicago, Ill. Carl J. Mowell & Son Funeral Home, Fayetteville, was in charge.