Obituary for Earl D. Hailey Sr.
Earl David Hailey, Sr., 85, passed from this life peacefully on the morning of August 15, 2022 at Autumn Leaves Nursing Home in Winnfield. He was born on December 21, 1936 in Nebo, Louisiana to the union of Ike Earl Hailey and Benny Mai Johnson Hailey at their home in Nebo. He spent a lifetime working in the oilfields of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Gulf of Mexico, and internationally in Mexico and the North Sea offshore of Scotland and Holland. “Mr. Earl” spent most of those years as a toolpusher, earning the respect and admiration of the men working for him that lasted long after their working relationship ended. He was known for his keen sense of humor and he loved to joke with pretty much anyone he met. He was a dedicated Mason and member of Michael Dempsey Lodge No. 327 in Jena for almost 45 years, serving as Past Master in 1996, 1997, 2009, and 2010. He was a member of the York Rite and the Scottish Rite, and he served as Grand Lodge District Deputy Grand Master and earned his Red Hat in 2003. He and his wife Thalia were members of Trinity Baptist Church.
Earl Sr. was preceded in death by two of his sons, Charles Aaron Hailey and George Wesley Hailey, his parents, and sisters Cora Belle Hailey, Georgia Jones, and Beth May.
He is survived by his wife of many years and high school sweetheart Thalia Davis Hailey, daughters Connie Hailey Masters (Dinky) and Kathy Hailey McKenzie (Ronnie Mac), sons Earl David Hailey, Jr., Tommy Ike Hailey (Debra Jo), Darrell Davis, and Benny Hailey (Karen), sisters Ikie Mae Henderson, Vera “Shine” Walker, and Orlean “Teen” Davidson (Charles “Bubba”), nineteen grandchildren, and twenty-six great-grandchildren.
Graveside services will be held at the Hailey Cemetery off of LA Highway 127 south of Jena at 9:00 AM on Wednesday, August 17th under the direction of Magnolia Funeral Home of Alexandria with Bro. Tim Kirl officiating. Friends and relatives are invited to attend and pay their last respects. In lieu of flowers, the family requests a donation in Earl’s honor to the Michael Dempsey Lodge Dyslexia Foundation. The mailing address is as follows: 1796 Sycamore St., Jena, LA 71342.
Pallbearers will be Earl Hailey, Jr., Tommy Ike Hailey, Darrell Davis, Corey Masters, Thomas Hailey, and Howie King. Honorary pallbearers will be Benny Hailey, Josh Hailey, Kris Elliott, Blake Prior, Dustin Hailey, Isaac Hailey, Larry Powell, Ronny McKenzie, Dennis Bradford and the members of the Michael Dempsey Lodge No. 327.
Earl Sr. was preceded in death by two of his sons, Charles Aaron Hailey and George Wesley Hailey, his parents, and sisters Cora Belle Hailey, Georgia Jones, and Beth May.
He is survived by his wife of many years and high school sweetheart Thalia Davis Hailey, daughters Connie Hailey Masters (Dinky) and Kathy Hailey McKenzie (Ronnie Mac), sons Earl David Hailey, Jr., Tommy Ike Hailey (Debra Jo), Darrell Davis, and Benny Hailey (Karen), sisters Ikie Mae Henderson, Vera “Shine” Walker, and Orlean “Teen” Davidson (Charles “Bubba”), nineteen grandchildren, and twenty-six great-grandchildren.
Graveside services will be held at the Hailey Cemetery off of LA Highway 127 south of Jena at 9:00 AM on Wednesday, August 17th under the direction of Magnolia Funeral Home of Alexandria with Bro. Tim Kirl officiating. Friends and relatives are invited to attend and pay their last respects. In lieu of flowers, the family requests a donation in Earl’s honor to the Michael Dempsey Lodge Dyslexia Foundation. The mailing address is as follows: 1796 Sycamore St., Jena, LA 71342.
Pallbearers will be Earl Hailey, Jr., Tommy Ike Hailey, Darrell Davis, Corey Masters, Thomas Hailey, and Howie King. Honorary pallbearers will be Benny Hailey, Josh Hailey, Kris Elliott, Blake Prior, Dustin Hailey, Isaac Hailey, Larry Powell, Ronny McKenzie, Dennis Bradford and the members of the Michael Dempsey Lodge No. 327.