Mr. Ira Gean "Buddy" Atkinson

Ira G. “Buddy” Atkinson of Florence, MS passed away on Sunday, March 1, 2015. Buddy was born in Water Valley, MS to William Mack and Mattie Thorn Atkinson on March 23, 1942. He grew up in Tutwiler, MS and graduated from West Tallahatchie High School and Northwest Junior College. He served six years in the Mississippi National Guard. He spent his career in sales and retired from Kimberly Clark Corporation. He was married for 49 years to his loving wife, Anita Dorris Atkinson. Buddy was preceded in death by his parents. In addition to his wife, he leaves behind to cherish memories of his life, his sons, Chris Atkinson and his wife Brooks, Jason Atkinson and his wife Brook; four precious granddaughters, Samantha Atkinson, Kelsey Atkinson, Mattie Grace Atkinson and Emma Kate Atkinson; one brother and two sisters who will cherish the memories of special times with him, Bill Atkinson, Barbara Gentry and her husband Leo, and Betty Pierce and her husband Mike. He is also survived by a host of nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews along with many special friends. Buddy was a faithful member of First Baptist Church in Florence, MS and a member of the Greeters Sunday School Class. He loved his family and thoroughly enjoyed spending time with them. His favorite pastime was playing golf because of the great fellowship with his friends and family. He also enjoyed the many trips he and Anita were blessed to take. Visitation was held at Chancellor Funeral Home in Florence on Tuesday, March 3rd from 5 to 8 PM and at First Baptist Church in Florence on Wednesday, March 4th from 10 to 11 AM with the service following at 11:00 AM. Interment followed in the Garden of Memories. Reflections from his sons, Jason and Chris: We can only speak for ourselves, but when we think of our dad, the first word that comes to mind is “admiration”. To us, Dad’s finest quality was his patience (a ton of patience), an inherent ability to listen, absorb and to offer a point of view based on quite, measured wisdom. Duty, decency, reliability, honor, dignity, respect: these are all qualities that our father not only held in high esteem but practiced every day during his time on this earth. He was a serious and disciplined man, but he could never resist the opportunity to laugh with friends and loved ones. We also admire him because of the kind of father he was to us. Yes, he loved us, very much. But he also instilled in us a core value system that defined who “HE” was. And that he was a man who kept promises, honored commitments, and was always a man of integrity. Whenever we stumbled, he could have accepted our own views of defeat, and could have advised us to take the easy way out and quit. But he would have never considered that option, for either of us. He fully expected us to see things through, all the way to the end. We could always expect him to say, “Do whatever it takes, it just needs to be done.” One of our greatest admirations for our Dad was his love and commitment for our Mother, and not just marital commitment. He was committed to making her happy. If it was important to her, it became even more important to him. They were happily married for 49 years and on July 10, 2015, would have been a momentous occasion of witnessing their 50th anniversary. Our dad brought joy and fulfillment to many, and his legacy will love on forever.