| 1. | Grady Austin Wilkes was born on 31 Aug 1936 in Society Hill, Darlington, South Carolina, USA; died on 5 May 2004 in Brigham City, Box Elder, Utah, USA. Other Events and Attributes:
- SSN issued: South Carolina, USA
- Residence: South Carolina, USA
- Social Security Number: 251-50-7271
Notes:
Grady A. Wilkes
BRIGHAM CITY, Utah -- Grady Austin Wilkes, 67, passed away Wednesday, May 5, 2004 at McKay Dee Hospital with his loving family by his side. He died from valley fever, an illness affecting the lungs that he contracted while spending the winter in Arizona.
Grady was born Aug. 31, 1936 in Society Hill, a son of Clarence Earl and Elma Freeman Wilkes.
He was very proud of his service in the Army. He was a Green Beret and served in Korea with the 11th and 101st Airborne. He also served with the Utah, National Guard, and was a smoke jumper in Alaska. He earned the National Defense service medal and the good conduct medal.
Grady married Ila Rae Estep on July 21, 1962 in Elko, Nev.
He was a member of the Brigham City River Ward.
Grady had various jobs in his life including picking cotton and tobacco as a child until he joined the army at 15 years old. (He always worried that he would end up in Hell picking cotton). After he was honorably discharged he became a federal meat inspector until his entrepreneurial spirit took over and he became a mink rancher in 1964. He then went into the trucking business before starting Brigham Sand & Gravel in 1973, which still operates today. He also started Brigham Block Co. and Wilkes Industrial Sand Co., which is now known as Wisco Block and Pavers.
He loved spending the winters in Arizona and traveling about with his wife of 43 years, Ila Rae Wilkes. He also loved to take Ila for long drives in the evenings to watch the sunset, and have dinners in out of the way places. He spent many hours with her and their grandchildren on their pontoon boat at Willard Bay and Flaming Gorge, or almost nightly sitting on the back deck at their home watching the sunset with his family and friends. He loved his family, his home, his work and his friends and he longed for little else but received much more. He was a loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, we will miss his laughter, joyous smile and southern accent, and he will be missed by all who knew him.
Surviving are his wife, Ila Rae Wilkes of Brigham City; children, Grady Dean (Jane) Wilkes of Ogden, Utah, Ann (Wesley) Johnson and Lorraine (Dennis) Durrant, both of Kearns, Utah, Cory Grady (Melissa) Wilkes of Willard, Utah, Troy Grady Wilkes, Brigham City, Utah, Conley Stead (Lisa) Wilkes of Wickenburg, Ariz., and Coby Rust Wilkes of Brigham City, Utah; 20 grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; sister and brothers, Frances (Kay) Fuller of St. George, Utah, Murph (Gloria) Wilkes of Scottsdale, Ariz., and Buck (Courtney) Wilkes of Society Hill.
Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Monday, May 10, at the Brigham City River Ward Chapel, 531 N. 100 W., Brigham City.
Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday, May 9, at Myers Mortuary, 205 S. 100 E., Brigham City and from 10:00 to 10:40 a.m. Monday at the church.
Interment will be in the Plymouth Cemetery.
Send condolences to the family at www.myers-mortuary.com
Published in the Morning News on 5/8/2004.
Grady married Living [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
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1936 - 2004 (67 years)
