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WhiteleyLucious Hiram Whiteley departed this life on December 27, 2023, at the age of 106 in Huntsville, Arkansas.
He was born on January 15, 1917, in Grandview, Arkansas to Isacc Monroe and Nora Pritchard Whiteley.
Lucious married Vera Marie Anderson on February 27, 1947, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Lucious and (Vera) Marie settled in Colton, California where he owned a shop and worked as a mechanic.
In October of 1962, Lucious and Marie sold the shop, packed up all their belongings on an 8x14 foot trailer he made and loaded Marie and their first three children (Jim, John, Betty) into the “ole” 1954 International pickup truck and drove cross-country to Rudd, Arkansas where they settled into the homestead life.
Lucious worked hard on that land, farming, gardening, building, raising his children and even adding one more to his brood (Eugene), after settling back here in Arkansas.
Lucious served his country as part of the 89th Field Artillery during WW2, driving a truck delivering supplies where they were needed and told stories of having breakfast in the mess-tent in Pearl Harbor when first bomb blew up. He recalled looking out and seeing the USS Arizona engulfed in flames and the sorrow he felt for all the soldiers who lost their lives on the ship that day. Lucious was a hard-working creative man. He enjoyed building and working on things, working in his beautiful flower beds, tending to his yard and visiting anyone who stopped by. You would rarely catch him sitting still until his later years, when often times you’d find him sitting on his front porch swing, cover-alls on, a blanket on his lap and a smile and a wave for every car that drove by.
Lucious is preceded in death by his wife, Vera Marie; his son, James Paul (Jim) Whiteley; his son, Eugene Whiteley; his grandson, Ronnie B. Smith; his mom and dad, five brothers, three sisters.
He is survived by his daughter, Betty Smith; son, and daughter-in-law, John and Carol Whiteley; daughter- in-law, Georgia Whiteley; eight grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren, and six great-great-grandchildren.
Special thank you to the caring and compassionate staff at Meadowview in Huntsville, Arkansas.
Graveside service will be 2:00 p.m., Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at Dean Cemetery in Berryville. Memorial donations may be made to St. Joseph Indian School, 1301 N. Main Street, Chamberlin, SD 57325. Arrangements under the direction of Nelson Funeral Service. Online condolences may be sent to nelsonfuneral.com.
