Wyatt Tullos Sr.

Published 8:34 pm Monday, April 16, 2018

Funeral services for Wyatt Tullos Sr., of Clinton, are Wednesday, April 18, 2018, at 11 a.m. at Lakewood Funeral Home in Clinton with burial at Lakewood Memorial Park.

Visitation will be today, April 17, 2018, from 5 until 7 p.m. at the funeral home and will continue Wednesday, April 18, 2018, from 10 a.m. until time of service at the funeral home.

Mr. Tullos, 91, died Sunday, April 15, 2018, after a long battle with congestive heart failure. He was born Sept. 17, 1926. He was the 10th of 12 children born to Nathan F. and Effie B. Tullos. He was married to Glenda Smith, of Edinburg, on July 11, 1953. Three children were born to this union. 

He was a wonderful father who supported, advised and counseled his children to be educated and choose a profession. His daily prayer was for each of them to “be of service to God and our fellow man.” He mentored his son, Wyatt Jr., to follow his father’s footsteps in teaching and coaching young people. He supported his daughter, Deborah, as she became a physician. He was a fantastic grandfather who loved, adored and ministered to young ones advising them to “put God first in all future plans.” 

His hobbies included fishing, camping and gardening. He grew numerous awesome Better Boy tomatoes and many other vegetables. He had two pecan trees that he harvested, shelled and preserved every year. He and Glenda traveled to all 50 states. 

He graduated County Line High School, Newton/Neshoba County in 1944. He worked in Memphis, Tennessee, at a tire manufacturing company for one year before enlisting in military service. He served in the US Army Air Force 26th Fighter Squadron 1946-47 as a parachute rigger and repairman in U.S.-occupied Okinawa after WWII. He was awarded the Victory Medal, the Army of Occupation Medal, the marksmanship medal and the Good Conduct medal.

After military service, he returned to East Central Junior College in Decatur (1947-49) where he received a basketball scholarship. From 1949-51, he attended Mississippi Southern College (now USM) in Hattiesburg where, on a basketball scholarship, he played with the “Cinderella Kids” for the legendary Coach Lee Floyd. In 1951, he received a bachelor’s degree in education.

He worked and served as a teacher, coach and a school administrator for 39 years in the following schools:
St. Martin High School (Jackson County) Spring 1952; Edinburg High School (Leake County) Fall 1952-Spring 1954 ; Rose Hill High School (Jasper County) 1954-55; Johnson Station (Pike County) 1955-56 ; and West Lincoln High School (Lincoln County) 1956-61 where he coached the B-BB state runner-up boys’ basketball team in 1960-61. 

During those 10 years, he continued his education and obtained his master’s degree in education administration. 

He served in Bassfield from 1961-67. He became principal over grades K-12 in January. 1962 and continued coaching basketball through the 1963-64 school year. He continued to serve as principal at Bassfield through December 1967. 

He served as principal at Decatur High School from January 1968 to December 1969. 

In 1970, he became supervisor of driver education for the state of Department of Education. He retired in 1990. 

Since moving to Clinton in 1970, he has been a member of First Baptist Church where he served as Sunday School teacher of sixth grade boys for several years and enjoyed participating in Adult Sunday School and church fellowship activities. 

He coached YMCA youth boys basketball teams and supported local summer league baseball, high school basketball and baseball teams. He enjoyed attending local and statewide high school and college boys and girls basketball tournaments and baseball games. 

Preceding him in death were his father, Nathan F. Tullos; mother, Effie B. Tullos; daughter, Sandra M. Tullos; sisters, Sara Skinner, Enid Kissling; and brothers, Carl, Oben, Enos, Lias, Zane, Loyd, Rolf and Temp Sr. 

He is survived by Glenda, wife of 64 years; daughter, Deborah Cook (Willard), of Fort Worth, Texas; son, Wyatt Tullos Jr. (Holly), of Newton; five grandchildren, Belinda Cook Welch (Jon), of Dallas, Texas; Marilyn Tullos, of Newton; Josie Tullos, of Newton; Erin Tullos, of Newton, and Wyatt Tullos III, of Newton; step-grandchildren, Beth Cook Gunalda (Jeremy), of Madison; Drew Cook, of Fort Worth Texas; Sarah Cook Ball (Denny), of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida; four great-grandchildren, Josie, Karris and Dorsey Gunalda, of Madison, and Rylee Ball, of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida; brother, Claud “Doc” Tullos, of Bartlett Tennessee; sisters-in-law, Lorraine Tullos, of Florence, Kentucky; Dean Tullos, of Union; Delphine Thornton, of Clinton; Katherine Huffman (Frank), of Petal; Frances Chipley (Tommy), of Carthage; and many nieces, nephews and cousins. 

Thank you to doctors and nurses at Mississippi Baptist Medical Center, St. Dominic Heart Center, Methodist Rehabilitation Center, University of Mississippi Medical Center, StayHome Health and Covenant Caregivers, City of Clinton fire and police departments for aid and assistance in caring for him over the past year. 

Pallbearers will be Steve Bonner, Terry Tullos, Jimmy Tullos, Bobby Tullos, Bobby Thornton, Phil Thornton, Steve Chipley, Randy Smith, Jimmy Smith, Tim Brown and Guy Odom. 

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be made to Gateway Rescue Mission in Jackson, and American Red Cross.
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