W.B. Roberts, 87, of Ocilla, Georgia, died Tuesday, December 11, 2012 at Tift Regional Medical Center in Tifton, Georgia.
Funeral services will be held 3 P.M., Friday, December 14, 2012, at the Ocilla Baptist Church with the Rev. Rob Dowdle and the Rev. Robert Couey officiating. Randy Crenshaw will give the eulogy. Interment will follow in the Brushy Creek Cemetery, Irwin County. The family will receive friends Thursday evening from 7 to 9 at the funeral home in Ocilla.
Mr. Roberts was born February 4, 1925 in Irwin County to the late Reason Rafe and Minnie Lou Wheelis Roberts. Mr. Roberts was drafted into the U. S. Army in 1943 and served with the 28th Infantry Division, Company E, 109th Regiment, 1st Army. He served in the European Theater and a few weeks after D-Day, he landed at Normandy on Omaha Beach. He was wounded in battle in Southern France and received the Purple Heart. In addition, he was a sharpshooter and awarded the Army Good Conduct Medal and WWII Victory Medal among others. Returning home to Ocilla, Mr. Roberts joined Irwin EMC in 1949 as a ground man on a line crew. During his 39-year tenure, he worked nearly every job in the cooperative and achieved his master electrician certification. In 1962, he was appointed manager and served in that position for 26 years. He was the sixth and longest serving manager in the cooperative’s nearly 75 year existence. In appreciation of his service, Irwin EMC unveiled the W.B. Roberts Community Room in 2010. He was a charter member of Oglethorpe EMC, the statewide umbrella of electric cooperatives, and served on the board of that organization. He was a member of the Ocilla Baptist Church, the Steadfast Seekers Sunday school class, American Legion Post 100, and a charter member of the Ocilla Rotary Club. Mr. Roberts was an avid Braves baseball fan, loved hunting and helping raise horses. He played a big part in helping raise two famous horses: “Non-Stop With Credit” and “Lil’ Shot of Fire Water”.
He is survived by his wife of 64 years: Mary Jim Purvis Roberts of Ocilla; two sons: William “Bill” Roberts, Jr. of Mobile, Alabama and Brent Roberts of Ocilla; grandchildren: Lyndsay Roberts of Memphis, Tennessee and Patrick William Roberts, Jr. of Mobile, Alabama; sister: Margie Horne of Perry; brothers: Hugh W. (Charlotte) of Ocilla and Troy E. (Wynona) Roberts of Fitzgerald, as well as several nieces and nephews. Along with his parents, he was preceded in death by his brothers: James Barney Roberts, Harmon Lamar Roberts, Ralph Mannin Roberts and Amon Roberts.