BBBTV12 Serving Anderson, Roane, and Morgan Counties
Byron Thomas Waldrip, 103, died on May 31, 2020 at his home in Kingston, TN. This beloved husband, father, brother, and friend was born in Independence County, AR on August 8, 1916, the only son of Thomas Revery Waldrip and Monnie Smith Waldrip. After attending the University of Arkansas and graduating in 1939, he married the love of his life, Flo Dena Pollard, on Christmas Day, 1940. He served proudly with the U.S. Army during World War II and enjoyed a long and distinguished career with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service. During his career, he provided loving homes for his family in Columbus, MS; Spartanburg, SC; Lexington, KY; Philadelphia, PA; Tulsa, OK; and North Little Rock, AR. Byron and Dena moved to Kingston, TN in 1996 to spend more time with family there. Byron made friends easily in all of these locations and cherished those friendships throughout his life. His faith and love of God were most evident in his exemplary life and in his selfless love for family and friends. His love of all God’s creation was apparent in the extensive travels Byron and Dena enjoyed together during their retirement years.
He was preceded in death by wife, Flo Dena Waldrip; parents, Thomas Revery Waldrip and Monnie Smith Waldrip; sister, Monnie Elizabeth Harris; and son, Byron Thomas Waldrip, Jr.
He is survived by daughter, Deanna Karen Williams, and husband, Joe Williams, of Bixby, OK; son, William Gary Waldrip, and wife, Sandy Waldrip, of Kingston, TN; grandchildren: Deanna Lynn Coberly of Tulsa, OK; Pamela Jean Williams of Frisco, TX; Bonnie Jean Waldrip of Brunswick, GA; Graham Thomas Waldrip of Knoxville, TN; Sarah Morganne Waldrip of Stuttgart, Germany; and great-granddaughter, Cadence Jo Coberly, of Tulsa, OK.
Byron was a member of the Kingston Church of Christ. The family wishes to express their appreciation to the Church for all the love and support provided during the years he lived and worshipped the Lord in Kingston. Interment will be in Blue Springs Cemetery at Magness, Arkansas. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the American Cancer Society or the Kingston Church of Christ. Kyker Funeral Home of Kingston is serving the Waldrip Family.
