Funeral services for Dorothy Heacock Ray Walker, 99, of Leland will be at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, June 14, 2014 at First Baptist Church in Leland. She died Wednesday, June 11, 2014, at her daughter’s home in Leland. Burial will follow in Leland-Stoneville Cemetery under the direction of Boone Funeral Home, Leland.
Dot was born November 10, 1914, the daughter of the Reverend Dr. James Davis and Mrs. Frank Tipton Ray. She graduated from high school in Starkville at the age of 16 and from Mississippi State College with a B.S. degree in 1935. While attending Mississippi State, she was a charter member of the Chi Omega Fraternity, a cheerleader, and was selected Miss Mississippi State. After marrying Dr. George Rea Walker, she began her long life in the Delta in Stoneville.
Dot was always involved in the life of her church and community. At First Baptist Church, Leland, she taught Sunday school, led vacation Bible schools and played the piano and organ. She made sure her children were active in the church as well. Dot was the first female board member of the Mississippi Baptist Children’s Village and served on the Mainland Advisory Council for the Hawaii Baptist Academy.
In the Leland community, she headed the PTA and was a room mother for all three of her children. She spearheaded the band parents’ fundraisers. She was a life member of the Leland Junior Auxiliary and the Daughters of the American Revolution. When Dot turned 92, she was honored by the Leland Rotary Club for serving as pianist for the club for 50 years. She was active in the local and state garden clubs and was an accomplished flower arranger and a master flower show judge.
Dot was preceded in death by her husband, George Rea Walker, Sr., her son, George Rea Walker, Jr. and grandson, David Walker Meeks. She leaves her sister, Margaret and husband Reverend John Gibson of Macon, Georgia, her daughter, Dorothy Ray Meeks and husband Roy of Leland, her daughter Frances Elizabeth Thurmond and husband Ed of Lexington, and her daughter-in-law, Margaret Heard Walker of Leland. Her grandchildren include Tim Meeks (Tracy) of Madison, Cyndi Meeks Saia (Tony) of Greenwood, Chris Walker Patterson (Dan) of Memphis, George Rea Walker III (Christie) of Jackson, Martin Heard Walker (Johanna) of Leland, Keturah Thurmond Maraska (Don) of Parris Island, South Carolina, Edward Thurmond (Beth) of Richmond, Virginia, and nineteen great-grandchildren.
The family will receive friends one hour prior to services at the church. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to First Baptist Church of Leland or a charity of your choice.