Melvin Leroy Witter Jr

Mr. Melvin Leroy "Mel" Witter, Jr., 62, thirty-two year employee of South Central Bell, died Tuesday, February 5, 2008 at his residence on Word Road in Duck River. Funeral services will be conducted at 2 p.m. Saturday at Harvest Baptist Church, 119 4th Ave., Columbia, with Rev. Ron Paul and Rev. Christopher Rue officiating. Burial will be in Sheboss Cemetery with military honors provided by Herbert Griffin American Legion Post 19. The family will visit with friends Friday from 4 - 8 p.m. at Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home and Saturday from 1 -2 p.m. at the church. Memorials may be made to Blue Creek Academy, 400 Dutch Ridge Rd., Clendenin, West Virginia, 25045 or Christopher Rue Missionary Fund, c/o Charity Baptist Mission, P.O. Box 692, Bristol, Tennessee 37621. Notes of sympathy may be sent to the family at www.oakesandnichols.com. The Detroit, Michigan native was the son of the late Melvin Leroy Witter and Edith Christine Ragan. He was a graduate of Garden City High School in Garden City, Michigan and attended Lawrence Tech in Michigan. He received a bachelor of divinity degree from Pensacola Bible Institute. He served in the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War. He was a member of Harvest Baptist Church where he served as song director for seventeen years and was instrumental in starting Bible Baptist Church in Pulaski where he preached for the first six months. Mr. Witter was a member of Telephone Pioneers, earned a black belt in karate, loved hunting and fishing and had a passion for music. He is survived by his wife of 38 years, Sarah Tomblin Witter of Duck River; three daughters, Naomi (Christopher) Rue of the Ukraine, Ruth (Eric) Brown of Duck River, Hannah (Christopher) Resmondo of Cantonement, FL; four sons, Andrew (Jennifer) Witter, Nathan (Crystal) Witter both of Columbia, Jeremy (Sheila) Witter of Clendenin, WV, Samuel (fiancée, Rebekah Cagle) Witter of Pensacola, FL; one brother, Harvey (Jan) Lacroix of Crossville; one sister, Edith Orr of Pulaski; and 19 grandchildren. He was preceded in death by an infant brother, Waylon Lacroix. Pallbearers will be Andrew Witter, Nathan Witter, Jeremy Witter, Samuel Witter, Eric Brown and Christopher Resmondo. Honorary pallbearer will be Jimmy Smith.