Richard Onex Bolling

Richard Onex Bolling

Richard Onex Bolling, 87, of Bedford, passed away Friday, Sept. 17, 2010. He was born in Bedford County, on July 15, 1923, a son of the late Joseph Green Bolling and Angie Barbour Bolling.

He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Helen Bailey Bolling. They have three children, Richard Bailey Bolling and his wife, Carol, of Bedford, and two daughters, Carol Bolling Thompson and husband, John, of Orlando, Fla., and Anne Bolling Saad, and husband Alex, of Vienna. His four dearly beloved grandchildren, Catherine Bolling, Patrick Bolling, Matthew Bolling and Andrew Bolling, of Bedford, brought much joy in his life. He is also survived by five sisters, Edith Maxey, of Vinton, Estelle Gearhart, of Homosassa, Fla., Magdalene Patterson and Kathleen Wilkerson, both of Bedford, and Caroline Tuck, of Roanoke, as well as two brothers, Ray Bolling, of Hardy, and J.R. (Buddy) Bolling, of Bedford. He was preceded in death by four brothers, Malcolm Bolling, Russell Bolling, Odell Bolling and Clanton Bolling, and a sister, Pauline Bolling Martin. He was blessed with a large and extended family that he loved and spent many hours of togetherness with great joy and happiness. Onex grew up a country boy, a foundation he never lost, on a farm in Huddleston. After graduating from Huddleston High School, he proudly served his country as a U.S. Naval Armed Guard in World War II on a gasoline tanker. He crossed the Atlantic Ocean several times protecting much needed fuel for the D-Day invasion. He served in both the European and Pacific Theaters of War. After the war, he graduated from Phillips Business College in Lynchburg and received a degree in accounting. It was at Phillips he met and married the love of his life, Helen Bailey. A highly respected business and civic leader, Onex was President of Murray and Bolling Chevrolet Inc. and was an automobile dealer in Bedford for more than 60 years. In 1990, he was elected President of the Virginia Automobile Dealers Association, which served all the automobile dealers in the state of Virginia. In 1997, he was awarded the Time Magazine Quality Dealer Award in Atlanta, Georgia. This award is the highest honor an automobile dealer can receive. He was blessed with a long life and continued to participate in the business he enjoyed for many years. His love for his hometown was expressed by his active participation in many community projects. He was President of the Junior Chamber of Commerce in 1958 and was selected as Bedford's Outstanding Young Man of the Year. In 1976, he was elected to serve as President of the Bedford Chamber of Commerce. He served on the Bedford Advisory Board of the First National Exchange Bank for more than 20 years. A dedicated member of Main Street United Methodist Church, he was active on many committees, including Chairman of the Administrative Board, and served on the Board of Directors of the United Methodist Retirement Home in Salem.

The family suggests that those wishing to make memorials consider the National D-Day Memorial, P.O. Box 77, Bedford, VA 24523, or Main Street United Methodist Church, 212 East Main St., Bedford, VA 24523.

Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 19, 2010, at Main Street United Methodist Church, with the Rev. Les Trail and the Rev. Dr. Carl H. Douglass Jr. officiating. Interment, with military honors by Virginia Army National Guard Honor Guard will follow in Greenwood Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 19, 2010, at Updike Funeral Home & Cremation Service, Bedford.