William McLemore

As a very salt of the earth kind of man, William McLemore was a hard worker even from his earliest moments. The man he grew into reflected this fact, as he was a stable, thorough and dependable man people were proud to know. More importantly, William was a true family man who provided faithfully for his loved ones and shared much love and laughter.

In the year 1933, America found itself in trouble as the Great Depression pushed toward new heights as one in every four individuals was unemployed. It was a hard and challenging time, but James McLemore and his wife, Gertrude (Aday), maintained their positive spirits by focusing on a special blessing in their lives with the birth of their son, William, on March 3, 1933. William was one of eight children with five brothers, Junior, Floyd, Billy, Dewey and Alfred, and two sisters, Edas and Geneva. William’s mother was a busy homemaker, though she always found time to have fun with the kids. Interestingly, she was a descendent of the Cherokee Indians, and had been on the “Trail of Tears.” His father was a hardworking farmer, sharecropping fields of cotton, which he plowed with mules, and then harvested and sold his bounty. Because of his father’s strong work ethic, William grew up with an appreciation for hard work and caring for the family. At the age of 9, William went to work for the Tennessee Valley Authority as a “tadpole” (this was a person that had a rope tied around him and was flung into the Mississippi River to help construct the dams and locks). The water was mighty cold!

In his late teens, William and his brother moved to Arkansas and lived in cabins on stilts that were 15 feet tall. On one occasion, they got stranded in the cabin because of a flood and were eventually rescued by a boat. After his father died, William moved north with his mother and siblings, but farming was hard to come by in the winter, so he began heading south to warmer weather to find work. William was a farmer through and through – there wasn’t much he couldn’t do with a piece of property. From fruit picking to dairy farming, he followed in his father’s footsteps, working the land.

In 1950, William was introduced to a young girl named Edna through her brothers, who he knew from the migrant housing camps. As fate would have it, the two fell in love and were eventually married in the south. After saying “I do,” the couple moved north to Michigan where all the work was. They settled in Bangor for a time before William went to work on a dairy farm in Lawton and they were given a very nice house to stay in while he worked there. Eventually, William took a job at AF Murch (now the Coca Cola plant) and he and Edna bought a house of their own in Lawton. When not farming, William loved to do some fishing and hunting, particularly for rabbits and pheasants. For a while, he even raised rabbits, however, the task of killing them fell to his sons, since he couldn’t hurt a flea. As an animal lover, William had 10 cats that called his place home and chickens that laid him eggs to sell.

Having a strong family was always important to William. He spent his life balancing hard work as a farmer with being a devoted and loving family man. William was a man who cared for everyone he knew, and he expressed this care through his generosity and willingness to always lend a helping hand. Family was always William’s first priority, whether it was his siblings, his children, his grandchildren or good friends – his passion was to support his loved ones in any way he could. William was a proud grandpa to his many grandchildren, who he adored. Whenever they came over (which was often), there was always enough food to feed an army, including cornbread, and without fail, there was soap operas on TV.

Friends and family will remember William not for the things he did, but for the reason he did them. His presence in the world will be created missed, but the memories he created with his loved ones will always be remembered.

William McLemore, age 78, of Paw Paw, MI died on Thursday, December 15, 2011. Learn more about William and visit with his family and friends on Monday, December 19, from 11:00 a.m.– 1:00 p.m. at the Life Story Funeral Home, Betzler & Thompson –Paw Paw; 60900 M-40 (657-3870). Memorial service will be held following the visitation on Monday at 1:00 p.m. at the funeral home. Interment at Oakgrove Cemetery. Following the burial, food and fellowship will be shared at the Lawton Church of God.

William was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Edna; 2 sons, Earl Nix and Grover Nix; 2 grandsons, Harold and Herbert Nix; 1 great granddaughter, Aaliya Hamblin; 4 brothers, Junior, Floyd, Billy and Dewey McLemore; and sister, Edas Nix. He is survived by his 3 sons: Richard (Pam) McLemore, Glen Nix, Hoyt (Lynn) Nicks; daughter, Wanda Massengil; 22 grandchildren and many great grandchildren; brother, Alfred (Charlene) McLemore; sister, Geneva McLemore. Please visit William’s personal web page at www.lifestorynet.com, where you may share a memory, upload a photo and sign his online guest book before coming to the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.