William Lee “Billy” Wood, 82, of Fayetteville, formerly of Tifton, passed away peacefully Saturday, January 23, 2016, at Hope Memory Center in Fayetteville after a lengthy illness that took his life. A Celebration Service of Billy’s life will be held at 2:00 p.m. Saturday, January 30, 2016, in the Sanctuary of Tifton’s First Baptist Church with Dr. Wayne Roe and Rev. John Jacobs officiating. Mr. Wood will be laid to rest at Oak Ridge Cemetery. The family will receive friends Friday, January 29, 2016, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the Chapel of Bowen-Donaldson Home for Funerals.
Mr. Wood’s nephews, Greg Eldridge, Jeff Thompson, David Martin, James Sparks, Carl McKenney, Johnny Veazey and Al Wright will serve as pallbearers. Honorary pallbearers will be Mr. and Mrs. Homer Allison, Mr. and Mrs. Jimmy Akins, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Coley, Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Folsom, Mr. and Mrs. Don Turner, Wendell Giddens, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Hammons, Wayne Bannister and members of V.F.W. Tifton Post 5280. Mr. Wood will be placed in the church one hour prior to the service.
A longtime resident of Tifton, both in childhood and retirement, Billy, as he was affectionately known was predeceased in death by his beloved wife of 45 years, Marcella Eldridge Wood of Ocilla; and his parents, Oscar Lee Wood and Nell Abbott Wood of Tifton. He had been a member of Tifton’s First Baptist Church since 1985.
A graduate of Tifton High School, Billy also attended ABAC after his service in the United States Army during the Korean Conflict in Korea for 17 months. Billy was retired from the Georgia Department of Labor, where he had a 30-year career in Atlanta, serving as the Assistant Director of the Manpower Services Division, taking a passionate role in helping those who were unemployed in the state of Georgia to become better educated and qualified to obtain new jobs.
Billy served as the Commander of the V.F.W. Tifton Post 5280 and worked diligently every year to honor our veterans who have been buried in Tift County by placing a flag on their graves on Memorial and Veterans Day. His love for his country and veterans continued after he moved to Fayette County, where he was instrumental in starting a new veterans group at Arbor Terrace Assisted Living Facility called the Veterans of Arbor, where they had 43 active veterans, who worked together to raise money to preserve a military plane in a museum, held “official” flag-burning ceremonies in honor and memory of those who served, served as the Honored Guest at the All American Memorial Day 5K, presenting awards to the winners and was recently awarded a Quilt of Valor by the Quilts of Valor Foundation of Georgia.
Mr. Wood is survived by his daughters and their spouses, Leanne Wood Farman (Bruce) of Fayetteville and Elaine Wood Boney (William H.) of Branford, Florida; and four grandchildren, Lydia Farman of Athens, Leslie Farman of Atlanta, Olivia Boney of Tallahassee, Florida and Will Boney of Greenville, Tennessee. Billy was an only child, but Marcella’s family was an integral part of his life and is also survived by Gerald and Janet (Eldridge) Thompson of Fitzgerald, Jack and Kip Eldridge of Mystic and Monteen Eldridge and the late Franklin Martin of Mystic; as well as his nieces and nephews who he loved.
The family would like to express sincere appreciation for the outpouring of love and concern for Billy over the last two years of his illness.
The family requests that, in lieu of flowers, memorial gifts be made to the Georgia Baptist Children’s Home, Baxley Campus, 9420 Blackshear Highway, Baxley, GA 31513; or First Baptist Church of Tifton, 404 Love Avenue, Tifton, GA 31794.