Harold Clay Pilkington

Harold Clay Pilkington, age 68, of Wilson Cove in the Beaverdam Community died Tuesday, May 19, 2009, at Haywood Regional Medical Center. A native of Swain County, he was the son of Faye Passmore Pilkington and the late Archie Pilkington. He was also preceded in death by a brother, Dennis Wade Pilkington. He retired from Champion International and Blue Ridge Paper Products with 42 years of service. He was a member of Beaverdam Baptist Church. Clay was a huge fan of motorcycles and working on guns. He was an avid deer hunter and enjoyed traveling out west on hunting trips with his wife and nephew. He was a United States Air Force veteran. In addition to his mother, he is survived by his wife of 30 years, Peggy Scott Pilkington; two daughters, Lynn Presnell and her husband, Jerry, of Waynesville and Sabara Coleman and her husband, Tony, of Canton; two sisters, Gladys Emerson of Canton and Marlene Smith and her husband, Truman, of Gaffney, SC; a brother, Arthur Pilkington and his wife, Trish, of Elizabethton, TN; five grandsons, Courtney and Cheyenne Pilkington, Bryan Reeves and his wife, Nicole, and Terrence and Malik Coleman; two granddaughters, Rebekah Presnell and Jerica Pate and her husband, Luke; and several nieces and nephews. Funeral services will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, May 21, 2009, at the Canton Chapel of Wells Funeral Home with the Reverend Harry Worley officiating. Entombment will follow at The Horizon at Crawford/Ray Memorial Gardens Mausoleum. The family will receive friends from 1:30 until 3:00 p.m. prior to the service at the funeral home.