Roy Newman

Roy Newman

1925 ~ 2012

Gulfport

Roy Newman, born October 8, 1925 in Long Beach, MS, passed away on May 6, 2012, in Gulfport.

As a child, he lived in Biloxi and then resided in Hammond, LA, Bay St. Louis, Honduras, Central America, and settled in Gulfport.

He attended Lopez Elementary School in Biloxi, Bay St. Louis High School, Southeastern College, LA, and the University of Southern Mississippi where he studied economics and Business Management. He also attended the National Hardwood Lumber Association School in Memphis, TN.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Anna Shepard Newman; his father, Stephen Ernest Newman; his sisters, Marion Newman Hurst and Susan Newman Meyer; and his brothers, Niles Newman, Virgil Payton Newman, and Stephen Ernest Newman, Jr.

He is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Cunningham Newman of Gulfport; his sons, Rodney Newman (Norma) of Ocean Springs, MS, and Douglas Newman (Lee Ann) of Biloxi, MS; his daughters, Cynthia Bergin (Patrick) and Roianne Gutierrez (Brent), all of Gulfport; his grandsons, Lorenzo Newman, Peyton Bergin, Grant Gutierrez, and Chad Gutierrez; his granddaughetrs, Anna Newman, Alexandria Bergin, Abigail Bergin, Nancy Newman, Camille Newman, and Katharine Newman; and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was a U.S. Naval veteran and was held in a survivor's camp in the South Pacific during World War II.

Roy founded Newman Lumber Company in Honduras in 1947 where he began exporting tropical hardwoods into the United States. In 1953, he moved his company to Gulfport, MS, and became an importer of tropical hardwoods while maintaining a presence in Honduras until 1974. He established business interests in Bolivia, Peru, Brazil, Guatemala, and Nicaragua.

He was a member of Trinity United Methodist Church, Gulfport, and was a former member and past president of the Men's Club, former chairman of the Men's Bible Class, and former member of the Board of Trustees.

He served on the Advisory Board for Hancock Bank and was a member of the Board of Trustees of Memorial Hospital at Gulfport and the Memorial Hospital Development Foundation where he endowed the Roy Newman Family Pediatric Fund. He was an avid supporter of many charities along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Roy served our civic community as a member, Past President, Director, and was a Paul Harris Fellow of the Gulfport Rotary Club, the Pine Burr Area Council of Boy Scouts where he was a Cub Scout, Webelos, and Boy Scout Leader, Gulfport Yacht Club, Great Southern Club, Mississippi Economic Council and the Mississippi Economic Association, the National Federation of Independent Business, the Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, former Director of USM Athletic Committee, and the Mississippi Manufacturer's Association.

He was also a member of the National Hardwood Lumber Association, the International Wood Products Association, and the International Trade Club. He was a founding member and President of the Mahogany Loggers Association of Honduras and a member of the Mississippi Manufacturer's Association.

Memorial donations may be made to: Trinity United Methodist Church, 5007 Lawson Avenue, Gulfport, MS 39507, or the Memorial Hospital Foundation, Roy Newman Family Pediatric Fund, PO Box 940, Gulfport, MS 30502.

The funeral service will be held on Wednesday, May 9, 2012, at Noon at Trinity United Methodist Church, Gulfport, where family and friends may visit from 10:00 AM until Noon. Burial will follow at Floral Hills Memorial Gardens, Gulfport.

RIEMANN FAMILY FUNERAL HOME, 11280 Three Rivers Rd, Gulfport is in charge of arrangements.

An online obituary may be viewed and memories shared at www.riemannfamily.com.