Allen Mcleod Mathews

Funeral services will be held 10:30 a.m. Monday, January 3, 2011 at First Baptist Church of Dothan with Dr. Johnny Fain, Rev. Bob Gross and Dr. Harper Shannon officiating. Burial will follow in Memory Hill Cemetery with Byrd Funeral Home on West Main Street directing. The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 3:00 until 5:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Mr. Mathews was born November 14, 1923 in Leroy, Alabama, the son of Albert Sidney and Juddie Williams Mathews. The youngest of seven children, he was raised during the Depression on a farm in Southwest Alabama. Despite difficult economic conditions, he and four of his brothers and sisters graduated from Alabama Polytechnic Institute as Auburn was then known.

He never forgot his high school alma mater (1942), Leroy High School and took great pride in its many recent athletic successes including several state championships. After entering Auburn in the summer of 1942, he joined the Army and served in the 102nd Infantry Division known as the Ozarks, 380th Field Artillery Battalion. When he returned after the war, he resumed his education at Auburn, graduating in 1947.

He soon married the love of his life, Jeanette Carleton and began a memorable career as County Agricultural Agent, serving in Pickens and Greene Counties for 14 years before serving as Houston County Agricultural Agent for almost 25 years. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Award in 1964. After retirement in 1985, he devoted the rest of his life to his church family and Auburn sports and was a proud member of the Dothan Kiwanis Club. An avid reader, he especially enjoyed American History and discussing family history with nieces and nephews, whom he adored. Mr. Mathews served in various positions in First Baptist Church including deacon, Deacon Emeritus and avidly served as teacher in the Mathews/Sanders/McLeod/Freeman Sunday School class at the time of his death.

He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Jeanette Mathews of Dothan; two sons and a daughter-in-law, Larry Mathews (Carol) of Birmingham and Ronnie Mathews of Live Oak, FL; two grandchildren, Wesley Mathews (Wendy) of New Orleans, LA and Jenny Mathews of Los Angeles, CA.