Marion Earl Mathews

He is survived by: his wife Molly Walker Mathews, his son Steve (Lucinda) Mathews; his daughter Karen (Alan) Murray; grandchildren Josh (Amanda) Mathews, Dora (Clifton) Alison, Caleb Mathews, Jennifer (Joshua) Onizuka, and Katherine (Byungkwon Khang) Murray; great-grandchildren Silas Alison, Elizabeth Alison, and Taeho Khang. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Myra McKinney Mathews, as well as all of his siblings.

Earl was born in Newnan, Georgia, on November 7th, 1928 to Bernard Lyle and Mattie Kendrick Mathews. Earl was the youngest of five siblings (three brothers and a sister). He was a child of the Depression, growing up in the 1930s, but early on he showed an innate curiosity about how things worked, as well as great creativity and a strong sense of humor.

He volunteered for the Army as WWII was coming to a close, and ended up serving both in the Army and for a tour in the Navy. Taking advantage of the GI Bill upon his completion of service, he enrolled at Mercer University. Later, he transferred his studies to Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia. This proved very fortuitous, as it was at ABAC where he met and courted his future wife, Myra Katherine McKinney. Earl and Myra married in 1950 and later graduated from the University of Georgia. The young couple found employment in the Atlanta (East Point) Georgia area, where Earl experimented with various occupations until beginning employment with Delta Air Lines in 1952, first working as a Reservations/Ticket Agent in downtown Atlanta. By 1959, their family was complete with a son (Steve) and a daughter (Karen).

Over the years, his keen intelligence and lively sense of curiosity led him to earn graduate degrees and pursue a variety of careers under the Delta umbrella, to include graphic artist, computer programmer, flight simulator engineer, systems engineer, and integrator of an elaborate system for parts inventory and retrieval used in aircraft maintenance, and many more. He retired from Delta in 1990 after 38 years with the company.

Myra and Earl enjoyed traveling. Taking advantage of the ‘free flying’ privileges made available to Delta employees, the family took a trip to a new destination every year. Some of these destinations included Miami, San Francisco, Boston, Niagara Falls, and Williamsburg, among many others.

Earl was something of a Renaissance man and was truly a lifelong learner, always eager to develop new skills, read another book, and tinker with things. At home, he tackled endless handyman tasks, and busied himself with all sorts of projects, from building his own telescope, to crafting a sailboat made with plastic carpet cleaner bottles dubbed the “Argosheen Argosy,” to engineering and fabricating an elaborate passive solar collector on the south face of the house (it was quickly removed when Myra strongly objected!) He was a master at creating realistic models of airplanes, ships, or other objects using scrap wood and cut-up tin cans. One lifelong constant was his ability to express himself in art – be it painting, drawing, sculpture, or any combination thereof.

After Earl retired from Delta, he and Myra moved to Madison, Alabama in 1991 to be near their grandchildren. While living in Madison, Myra, and Earl volunteered many hours in their community across a variety of organizations. In particular, and because they both loved to read books, The Friends of the Library-Madison bookstore was the beneficiary of their time for over ten years.

Earl began crafting and operating puppets and eventually formed a puppetry drama group within his beloved First United Methodist Church in Madison. He and Myra both had a lifelong love of music. Earl sang in United Methodist Church choirs for most of his married life.

Earl & Myra were happily married for over 60 years. In order to be near their daughter and to enjoy the comfort of a senior retirement community, Myra and Earl moved to Texas in 2014. He tended to her every need in the last year of her life as her health and memory declined. Myra passed in 2016.

After Myra’s death, Earl continued to busy himself, to stay open and curious, and to enjoy life to the fullest. In this past year (at age 93!) he married again, and his new bride, Molly Walker Mathews, brought him much joy. Together they enjoyed watching re-runs of Little House on the Prairie and sitting on the porch watching and listening to the local songbirds. Earl was much loved in his community at Solstice Senior Living in Grapevine.

A memorial service will be planned for a later date in Texas.

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