AREA OBITUARIES – DAVID WEST

Charles David West, a resident of Murray, died June 17 at his residence. He was 88.

Memorial graveside services will be held at 11 a.m. June 23 at the Palestine Methodist Church Cemetery on 166 East in Fulton. There will be no visitation held at the funeral home and friends are asked to meet at the cemetery at the hour of service. Hornbeak Funeral Chapel, of Fulton, is in charge of arrangements.

He is survived by his spouse, Betsy Whitesell Meade; two children, Dr. Milton (Paula) West of Paducah, and John David West of Mayfield; two step-children, Rob W. (Susan) Meade, of Redding, Calif., and Amanda Bell (John) Tossberg, of Nashville, Tenn.; his grandchildren, Benjamin Milton (Cherith) West, of Dallas, Texas, and John Christian (Anna) West, of Pine Mountain, Ga.; and two great-grandchildren, Leyla Sky Crane and Beau Christian West.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Roy Milton West and Mary Margaret Traughber West; his first wife, Lu Ann Casey West, who passed away in 1995; and two brothers, Robert Lynn West and William Norman West.

Born July 28, 1932, in Mayfield, he graduated from Mayfield High School in 1950 and Murray State University in 1954 with a degree in business.

His first job was delivering the Louisville Courier Journal newspaper as a youth. He spent most of his life as an accountant at the Lockheed-Martin Gaseous Diffusion plant in Paducah. He also taught at Lowes High School in Graves County. David retired in 1995. He was a Kentucky Colonel.

He lived most of his life in Mayfield. He was a tireless advocate for people with disabilities having served as the Board Chair of the Four Rivers Behavioral Health board, one of the original founders of the J.U. Kevil Center, and a leader in the construction of the Willow Apartments Group Home.

In December 1998, he married Betsy Whitesell Meade and moved to Fulton. He was an active member of the Fulton First United Methodist Church and was a member of the Fulton Rotary Club. During his retirement years he enjoyed becoming a hobby farmer. David and Betsy traveled extensively throughout the United States and abroad.

Memorials may be made to the Fulton First United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 1386, Fulton, Ky. 42041, or Murray First United Methodist Church, 503 Maple Street, Murray, Ky. 4207