George L Payne Jr, 92, of Bartlett, TN, retired Switchman for South Central Bell Telephone Co., passed away on Tuesday, May 1, 2018. He was the adopted son of Mr. & Mrs. George Payne Sr. He grew up in the depression years, learning to farm and raise livestock, while a schoolboy. At 17 years old, he was drafted into the U.S. Navy for WWII; surviving the invasion of D-Day, Iwo Jima, Ieshima and Okinawa. He returned to meet and marry June Gwaltney. They had two children Steve and Allen. Mr. Payne worked 35 years for the telephone company in Memphis, Bartlett, and Rock Springs, Wyoming. Upon retirement, he spent 33 years, making many friends, hiking, biking, and traveling the U.S., as well as internationally. He loved his family, his friends and the beauties of nature.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife June G Payne, his son, Allen Payne, two sisters Janice Dawkins, Robbie June Stanley, and two brothers, Jack Payne and Jimmy Payne. He is survived by his son Steve Payne, and two grandchildren, Jason Payne and Jennifer Marshall.
