Arthur Wilson's Obituary
Arthur Wilson, 88, of Concord, died on May 4, 2012. He was born on April 27, 1924 in Frazer, Wayne County,
Kentucky. He was the fourth of six children born to Lincoln and Lottie West.
After graduating from high school in 1942, Arthur enlisted in the service and served with the 101st Airborne and was awarded 4 Bronze Stars for Normandy, Market Garden, Bastogne and Germany. Upon release from the military, he and his two brothers who served the same time in Europe, enrolled in the University of Kentucky and all three graduated the same day. He roamed around working here and there and in 1954, he was working for Rust Engineering at Oak Ridge, TN where he met his wife to be, Jo Ann. After marrying, they settled in Atlanta, Ga. where he went to work for Ford Motor Company at the Parts Depot. In 1965, he was transferred to the Parts Depot in Charlotte where they lived for 30 years before moving to Concord. He loved doing yard work, building things, and was an avid golfer. He and his wife played at Cowan’s Ford Golf Club for 25 years. After retirement, he became fascinated with clocks and gathered quite a collection, which he could fix himself. He was an avid reader and often said his fondest memory growing up was his mother reading to all of the children around the oil lamp and that was why he wanted to learn things and made him the avid reader he was. Also, after retirement, he and his wife, Jo Ann, traveled and covered almost every state. He dearly loved pets and went through the lives and deaths of four adorable dogs and two cats over the years. He fed the squirrels every morning, and if he was late, they came to the patio.
Art is survived by his wife of 57 years, Jo Ann and his sister, Christine Gibson of Cincinnati, Ohio and numerous nieces and nephews including Betty Young of Cincinanti, Linda Pennington of NJ, Pam Smiddy and Melissa Smiddy of GA, Mike Wilson of Lexington, KY, Steve Wilson of Lexington, Bob Wilson of Louisville, and James Gibson of Williamsburg, VA.
He is preceded in death by his parents, brothers Larry and John, and nephew Phil Wilson.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Hopewell Presbyterian Church or the Alzheimer’s Association.
A graveside service with military honors will be held at 11 AM Tuesday, May 8, 2012 at Hopewell Presbyterian Church with Rev. Allan Purtill officiating. The family will receive friends following the service in the family life center.
James Funeral Home, Huntersville, is serving the family. www.jamesfuneralhomeLKN.com
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