Walter Eugene Posey

Mr. Walter Eugene Posey, 85, retired from Monsanto Company since 1982 and a resident of Fourth Avenue, went to be with the Lord on October 23, 2004 after a brief stay in St. Thomas Hospital. Funeral services will be conducted Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. at Oakes & Nichols with Rev. Raymond R. Newell officiating. A celebration of his life will be given by his family. Interment will be in the Polk Memorial Gardens. The family will visit with friends Monday from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the funeral home. Memorials may be made to the Riverside United Methodist Church, 313 Sixth Avenue, Columbia, 38401. Notes of sympathy may be sent to the family at www.oakesandnichols.com. Mr. Posey was a member of the Riverside United Methodist Church where he taught Sunday School for several years. He previously was a member of the Highland Park Baptist Church where he taught Sunday School, served as a deacon and spoke as a lay-leader. "A devoted Christian busband, father, grandfather, brother, friend and neighbor." To serve his country during World War II, he enlisted in the United States Coast Guard, serving honorably for four years. In 1990, Mr. Posey was named "Maury County Good Neighbor of the Year" by First Farmers & Merchants National Bank. He served as a volunteer for Maury Regional Hospital Auxiliary and was a member of the auxiliary Super Stars. Mr. Posey had a passion for gardening, enjoyed hunting and raising beagle hounds. He was preceded in death by his first wife, S. Margaret McMurtrie Posey in 1987; his parents, Lewis Posey and Artie Brewer Posey; and two sisters, Vada Posey and Lucille Whitehead. Survivors include his wife, Sarah Cross Butler Posey of Columbia; three sons, Michael Eugene (JoAnn) Posey of Tullahoma, Claude Farris (Joan) Posey of Pleasant Grove, Alabama and Ralph Milton (Tracye) Butler of Murfreesboro; two sisters, Lois (J. W. "Dub") Rich and Edna Hines, both of Columbia; seven grandchildren, Meredith Alexis Posey, Joshua King Posey, Benjamin Christopher Posey, Kristin Danielle Posey, Raleigh Anne Butler, Rory Marshall Butler, Kimberly Renee Berry; four great-grandchildren; several nieces and nephews. Active pallbearers are Joshua Posey, Benjamin Posey, Sonny Thomas, Jeff Rich, Bobby Hines, Russ Cothran, Gerald Martin and Hillard Cross. Honorary pallbearers include Monsanto Retirees, Fellowship Sunday School Class and members of the first service at Riverside United Methodist Church, members of Maury Regional Hospital Auxiliary, Keith Mitchener, Ross Beckham, Will Reed, Jerry Norman, Lem Eastep, Tom Brown, James Deen, Martin Deen, Louis Eubank, Howell Wantland, Tommy McMurtrie, Dr. Thomas Dake and David Henson.