Obituaries

Long time Sherman resident Billy Stephens, born on July 8, 1920 in Van Alstyne, passed away September 21 in Mesquite. Family visitation will be held from 6:00-8:00 p.m. Wednesday, September 23, at Dannel Funeral Home in Sherman. Funeral services are scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Thursday, September 24, at Dannel Funeral Chapel. Rev. Dana Coker, of First United Methodist Church in Sherman, will officiate. Interment with military honors will follow in West Hill Cemetery. He was a 1938 Sherman High School graduate and lived in Sherman until 1999. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1942 and served aboard the U.S.S. Arided in the South Pacific. He attained the rank of Chief Petty Officer and was discharged at the end of World War II in 1945. Following his return to Sherman, he began his career as a salesman at Lewie and Lavender Wholesale Grocery Company in Sherman, working throughout N.E. Texas and S.E. Oklahoma, until his retirement in 1985. He worked 13 more years for Wal-Mart Stores until 1999, opening both the first Sherman store and the Wal-Mart Supercenter. He especially enjoyed greeting shoppers and was able to renew old friendships. He met and married Mary Ether Hooker on April 15, 1949 at Key Memorial United Methodist Church. They were both lifelong members of the church, where he served as Lay Speaker, Building Committee, Methodist Men, and taught a boys’ Sunday school class. His favorite pastime was playing dominoes with friends and brothers-in-law. He was a competitive player and won numerous Heart Fund tournaments in Oklahoma. Mr. Stephens was preceded in death by his parents, W.J. Stephens and Lora Hester Grider, his wife, 2 brothers, P.N. Stephens and John O. Stephens. He is survived by his son, Larry W. Stephens and wife, Cathy, of Garland; daughter, Mary Charles Rigsby Wu and husband, Richard, of Fullerton, California; grandsons Derek Stephens and wife, Anice, of Dallas and Richie Wu and wife, Jill, of Buena Park, California; two great grandchildren, Will and Sloane Stephens, and several nieces and nephews.