Richard Amis Wilkes

Richard Amis Wilkes, 82, retired employee of Dupont and resident of Gibson Hollow Road in Mt. Pleasant, died Tuesday, April 15, 2008 at Maury Regional Hospital. Funeral services will be conducted at 2:00 P.M. Thursday at Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home with Hueston Marshall and Ed Brown officiating. Burial will be in Rose Hill Cemetery with military honors provided by Herbert Griffin American Legion Post 19. The family will visit with friends Wednesday from 4:00 - 8:00 P.M. at the funeral home. Memorials may be made to The Salvation Army, Attn: Julie, 631 North First Street, Nashville, TN 37207 or the Mt. Pleasant Public Library, P. O. Box 71, Mt. Pleasant, TN 38474. Notes of sympathy may be sent to the family at www.oakesandnichols.com. The Maury County native was the son of the late Richard A. L. Wilkes and Flora Hight Wilkes. On August 6, 1946, he married Katherine Wiley Wilkes who preceded him in death on June 6, 2005. Mr. Wilkes was a 1944 graduate of Hay Long High School, attended Peabody College and received his B. A. in English and History from Middle Tennessee State University in 1949. He served in the 61st Armored Infantry Battalion, 10th Armored Division of the U. S. Army during World War II. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge and was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received. In the 1950's, he and his wife operated the John Wiley General Store in the Hampshire Community for a few years. After his retirement from Dupont with thirty-two years service, he enjoyed working on his farm. He was a member of Beech Hill Church of Christ. Survivors include one daughter, Jean Wilkes White of Memphis; one son, Richard W. (Tina) Wilkes of Mt. Pleasant; three grandsons, Benjamin Wilkes, Jonathon Wilkes, and Nicholas Wilkes, all of Mt. Pleasant; one nephew, John Hight (Kristen) Wilkes, Jr. of Franklin; two nieces, Kaye (Larry) Bruce and Brenda Mannon, both of Hampshire; one sister-in-law, Ina Kennedy of Hampshire. He was preceded in death by one brother, John Hight Wilkes; and one son-in-law, Douglas White. Pallbearers will be Ed Brooks, Bobby Bain, Kenneth Davis, Steven Boshers, Randy Boshers, Ronnie Boshers, Ricky Boshers, Terry Boshers, Barry Boshers, Jeff Boshers, Wayne Scott, and George R. Gilliam. Honorary pallbearers will be elders and deacons of Beech Hill Church of Christ, past and present employees of Dupont and Spontex, Jimmy Farris, Larry Bruce, Billy Hollis, Tommy Nicholson and Robert Bradley.