Arnold Gray Proctor Sr.

PROCTOR Arnold Gray Proctor Sr., 79, of Emporia, died in his home on Sunday, November 5, 2006. He was preceded in death by his parents, Gray Russell and Ora Eason Proctor; his brother, Russell B. Proctor; and his grandson, Andrew Proctor. Mr. Proctor was born January 1, 1927 in Macclesfield, N.C. and moved to Jarratt, Va. at the age of two. He graduated from Jarratt High School in 1945 and was employed by Camp Mfg. Co. in Franklin beginning in 1948. He graduated from International Correspondence School with a degree in electrical engineering, moving to Florida in 1955 to work with Cleveland Consolidated as manager of construction in their Cape Canaveral office. In 1958, he was named vice president and transferred to Denver, Colo. to establish a new office for Cleveland Consolidated. In 1961, Mr. Proctor started his own construction company, the A.G. Proctor Company, Inc., and was in the construction business for over 20 years with jobs in 44 of the 50 states. In 1974, Mr. Proctor was listed in the Engineering News as one of the top 400 contractors in the U.S. That same year, Mr. Proctor started purchasing decommissioned military bases and refurbishing them for civil use. He continued this work until 1982, establishing his own mortgage holding company in the process, a firm that is still in operation in Brunswick, Ga. During this time, he also purchased the Henry Ford Plantation in Richmond Hill, Ga., and completely renovated the mansion and grounds. In 1983, Mr. Proctor bought several farms in Greensville County, Va. and became a farmer along with owning and operating Seaboard Liquid Plant Foods. In 2001, Mr. Proctor saw a need for housing in Emporia and started The Meadows subdivision. Mr. Proctor was an active member of Lebanon Methodist Church, which he had joined as a child. He had many hobbies and interests and was an accomplished pilot. He is survived by his wife, Wanda O'Quinn Proctor; his children, Arnold G. Proctor Jr. and his wife, Marcia, of Galveston, Texas, Linda Proctor Lint and her husband, Ronald, of Estes Park, Colo., Margaret Proctor Marshall and her husband, Randall, of Miami, Fla., John Michael Proctor and his wife, Kelly, of Brunswick, Ga.; stepdaughter, Tonya Loper Paul and her husband, John, of Emporia, Va.; his grandchildren, Jeffrey Lint, Ellen Lux, Christopher Lint, Sgt. Michelle Gonzalez, Kimberly Urrutia, Joan Ross, Jason Lint, Matthew Proctor, Caleb Marshall, Kileen Marshall, Joshua Proctor, Bradley Proctor, Jonathan Paul, and Sydney Paul; and nine great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his sisters, Jean Proctor Pair, Evelyn Proctor Allen and her husband, Sherman, Doris Proctor Bankey; brothers, Ralph "Pete" Proctor and his wife, Martha, and Bobby Wayne Proctor and his wife, Doris; and many nieces and nephews. The family will receive friends on Tuesday evening from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at Echols Funeral Home in Emporia, where the funeral will be Wednesday morning at 11 a.m. Interment will be at the Emporia Cemetery. Memorials may be made to Lebanon Methodist Church Building Fund, Lebanon Church Road, Emporia, Va. or to the Emporia-Greenville Rescue Squad.