Everett Dedman "Woody" Woods Jr.

1929 - 2023

Everett Dedman Woods, Jr., who went by "Woody," died on March 31, 2023, in Neenah, Wisconsin, at the age of 93.

He was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on August 7, 1929, the only son of Memphis architect Everett D. Woods and Jessie Adams Woods. His two sisters, Jessie Woods Falls (Harold) and Nancy Woods Muse (Kruger), and a nephew, H. Naill Falls (Mary Falls Cooper), preceded him in death. He is survived by nephew Everett Woods Falls of Memphis; four nieces, Jessie Howard McClure of Greenville, SC, Nancy Montgomery Falls (Neil Price), of Nashville, Nancy Woods Muse and Sarah Muse Boywid (Bill), both of Memphis; five great-nieces, four great-nephews, and eleven great-great-nieces and nephews.

He studied electrical engineering at Georgia Tech and served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. Although he worked in his father's architectural office at one point and in several settings in IT, his true love was the theatre, especially musicals. For years he volunteered his help at Playhouse on the Square in Memphis, working mostly backstage, but also spending a year as a company member, appearing in their production of Julius Caesar. He volunteered for Opera Memphis for many years as well.

He remained in Memphis for about twenty years after the deaths of his parents. He lived for several years in Homer, Louisiana, before moving in 2009 to Neenah, Wisconsin, which became his final home. He loved to sing and contributed his baritone voice to the choir at First Presbyterian Church, where he was welcomed as a member. The friendship of the congregation was very important to him. In later years, especially, their care and support were invaluable.

For as long as he had his own home, he continued to play the piano. He indulged his love of the music of all sorts by attending concerts at Lawrence University and local high school musicals. For much of his adult life, his preferred mode of transportation was his bicycle. He could be spotted on his bike throughout Neenah and its environs running errands in good weather. Because of his background in architecture, he often noticed different or special architectural features on the buildings and homes he passed, and he was happy to point them out to anyone interested.

Those who remember him may agree that he could be exasperating and endearing at the same time. Endowed with a strong conviction of his own authority, he offered his advice and opinions freely. His nieces and nephews remember his introducing them to musical events and theatre productions. His love of theatre extended to his taking them trick-or-treating on Halloween and creating elaborate costumes. One year he dyed his entire body red to become a devil for the occasion. Another year he helped create a robot–mad scientist duo, rigging a wired remote-control box to connect the two. Handy with household repairs, he was adept at anything mechanical and was one nephew's electronics guru.

His family request that any donations in his memory be to the First Presbyterian Church at 200 S. Church St., Neenah, WI 54956.