Roger Allen Daley

Roger A. Daley, 97, of Knoxville passed away at his home on July 5, 2020. He was born in Quincy, Massachusetts to John Leo and Hazel Dewhurst Daley. He joined the U.S. Marine Corps after Pearl Harbor was attacked and served for four years (1942-1946.) He was among the first to fly the new B-25s in his capacity as a trainer of air crewmen, especially aerial gunners. While serving his country, in 1943 he met and married Elizabeth D’Oyley Beck, who was also a Marine and was also stationed at Cherry Point, North Carolina. Later he served in the Pacific. After the war was over, he returned to civilian life and was working in New York City when he met the late Frank Powers, who was in New York as part of his job as advertising manager for the Knoxville News Sentinel. Subsequently, Powers offered Daley a job in Knoxville. Daley came to Knoxville in October 1946 and began working as an advertising sales representative for the News Sentinel. In 1948 he became National Advertising Manager; in 1956 he became Advertising Director. Ten years later he was promoted to General Manager and President of the News Sentinel, where he served until his retirement twenty years later. During this period the News Sentinel expanded five times, became agent for the Knoxville Journal, and participated in many revolutionary changes in the industry.

Daley was a charter member and past president of the Knoxville Sales Executives Club and the Greater Knoxville Advertising Club. He received the Printer Ink “Man of the Year” award and was a charter member of the Knoxville Better Business Bureau, where he served on the board of directors and headed the Truth-in-Advertising Committee. He was a member of the American Newspaper Publishers Association and a very active member of the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association, chairing several large committees and serving three years on the board of directors. He twice served as consultant on business and marketing in Taiwan and in West Germany. During one of his terms as president of the Downtown Knoxville Association, the original plans for the Knoxville World’s Fair were proposed. He served on the board of directors and on several committees of the World’s Fair, including the seven-man panel for the use of the site after the Fair. He was on the executive council of the United Fund, where he served on the board of directors for many years. Daley was also a past president of the Knoxville Tourist Bureau and past vice president of the Chamber of Commerce. He was an officer and board member of numerous other charitable and civic organizations and was a life member and honorary board member of the Knoxville Zoo. He was also a forty-year Civitan member.

An active boater and water skier, he served many years on the board of directors of the Fort Loudoun Yacht Club, where he was a past commodore. He was also a past member of the regional chapter of the Order of the Blue Gavel as well as a past member of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and the Cherokee Country Club.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his first wife, and his two brothers, John Leo, Jr. and Lawrence Daley.

He is survived by his second wife, Patricia Gilliam Daley, whom he married in 2002; a son, William A. (“Mac”) Daley; two grandsons, Marquis (Kara) Daley and Dane (Lauren) Daley; and four great-grandchildren, Noah, Connor, Benjamin, and Eden Daley.

A celebration of life and reception of friends is postponed until a later date because of the coronavirus pandemic. Friends may leave condolences at www.berryhighlandwest.com or directly with family members. Special thanks are accorded to Lila Curry, CNA for her loving care and assistance with Roger in his final months. In lieu of flowers donations may be made in Roger’s honor to UT’s McClung Museum, the Knoxville Zoo, the Knoxville Museum of Art, the United Fund, or a charity of your choice.