George Kenneth "Ken" Kirby

George Kenneth Kirby of Mentone, Alabama, passed away on Sunday, July 17, 2016, twelve days shy of his 82nd birthday. He was the son of George Thomas Kirby and Myrtle Louise Crowe. He is survived by his wife of 61 years Florene Dobson Kirby; daughters Pamela Valosen (John) of Atlanta, Georgia, Patricia Riggins (David) of St. James, Missouri, Priscilla Allworth of Newnan, Georgia, and son Brian Kirby (Cecelia) of Acworth, Georgia; grandchildren Ashley Galusha Hyman (Loren), Shannon Galusha Brown (Jason), Benjamin Riggins, Laura Riggins, Kirk Allworth (Jenny), Chelsea Kirby Freeman (B.J.), and Christina Kirby; great grandchildren Ashlyn Moss, Paighton Hyman, Kensley Brown, Julia Freeman, and Kenneth Freeman; and sister Martha Kirby Nation. He was preceded in death by his sister, Jean Kirby Houston. Ken began his career with Southern Railway in 1951 in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and also held various positions with Southern in Spartanburg, South Carolina, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C. He retired from Norfolk Southern Corporation in Roanoke, Virginia, in 1990 where he held the position of Purchasing Director. Upon retirement at age 55, Ken and Flo returned to Mentone where they built a new home and farmed for 22 years. Kids, grandkids, and great grandkids enjoyed celebrating many special occasions there and have more fond memories of Mentone than they can count. He was never happier during those years than when he was on his tractor, bulldozer, or backhoe, or cheering on his beloved University of Alabama football team. In 2014, he moved to Wesley Woods at Newnan where he and Flo have enjoyed a new lifestyle and new friends. He was a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, and friend to so many of us who will miss him so much. As one of his nurses said, “he was truly a gem.” Visitation will be held on Friday, July 22, 2016, 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. (CT) at Wilson Funeral Home, 3801 Gault Ave. N., Fort Payne, Alabama. Funeral services will be held at Wilson on Saturday, July 23, 2016, at 11:00 a.m. (CT), followed by burial at Little River Cemetery in Mentone. If family and friends would prefer to make a donation in lieu of flowers, the family would be pleased for donations to be made to Mentone Community Church, 90 Summerville Road, Mentone, Alabama, 35984.

George Kenneth "Ken" Kirby

July 29, 1934 - July 17, 2016