Melbourne Highland

HIGHLAND, MELBOURNE - 100, Funeral services will be held Thursday, May 27, 2010 at Lynnhurst-Greenwood Chapel of Berry Funeral Home on Adair Dr. Visitation will be from 12:30 - 2 pm with the service at 2 pm, with the burial to follow at Greenwood Cemetery with Rev. Ron Mauser officiating. Pallbearers will be Melbourne's young men relatives. Melbourne was born in Knoxville in 1910, and was proud of living to be 100. When he was two years old, his family moved to a farm on the Tennessee River near Friendsville. At six, he started attending Friendsville Quaker Academy, where he was an excellent pupil. When he was 18, he left home and married. The land where he grew up was flooded by TVA. In 1935, during WWII he began working for Alcoa in Maryville where he became an excellent foreman. In 1944 he moved his family of wife and five children to California. In 1946 there he went to work as a pipefitter crew chief for Ace Pipelines for 22 years. While supervising the installation of gas pipelines, he met several celebrities - mostly in Palm Springs including Red Skelton, Bob Hope, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnez. He liked to recall how down-to-earth and friendly they all were. After 43 years away, and widowed he moved back to Tennessee. There he met and married Dyllis Coker Blair when he was 78 and she was 76. It was a blessed marriage and lasted 21 years until his passing. A dedicated Christian most of his life, he joined Central Baptist Church and was a member of the Berean Men's Class and, with his wife, the Joymakers' Choir. He is survived by his wife, Dyllis; four of his six children, Clementine Van Mowerick, Robert and Ben Highland and Linda Kay all of California. Also surviving are two sisters, Bertha Mae Blair Jones and Bernita Woodby, many nieces and nephews. He has 20 grandchildren, 40 great grandchildren and four great-great grandchildren. His stepdaughter is Ann Blair Stubblefield; his son-in-law Hugh Hix Stubblefield; step grandson is Jon Stubblefield; step granddaughter is Katie Stubblefield. He was very proud of this lineup! These are the facts. The man himself was very special. A steadfast Christian, he prayed the sweetest, most sincere and meaningful prayers, both at home and upon request in many gatherings. He had a fine bass voice which he used as an early singer with the Oak Ridge Boys and later as a member of Joymakers. He loved his wife and family members devotedly. But perhaps what most remember him for was his ability to make people laugh. He was a true wit, making life brighter for everyone he met. In lieu of flowers, as Melbourne would have liked, take time each day to pray, to make someone laugh, and to let your loved ones know how much you love them. Monetary donations may be made to Caris Hospice. Arrangements by Lynnhurst-Greenwood Chapel of Berry Funeral Home, 2300 W. Adair Dr. Condolences may be offered at www.lynnhurstchapel.com