Robert Ervin Bryant passed away May 2, 2019 at the age of 94 after a brief stay in the hospital. He was born December 3, 1924 in Jackson Tennessee where he spent his childhood years. During World War II he served his country in the Navy from March 1943 to December 1945, patrolling the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic, and the Pacific Oceans on two ships, PCS 1450 Patrol Craft and the USS Bobolink.
While in the navy, he met his wife of 72 years, Shirley Ruth Williams in Washington DC. They were married in Miami Florida.
After the service, Robert moved to Memphis, Tennessee to begin work as an apprentice in the printing business. Quickly mastering the printing trade, he went into partnership with Wallace Jaco and opened his own printing firm, Jaco-Bryant Printers. Approaching retirement age, he sold the business and devoted his later years as a contractor building houses in the Memphis Area. This endeavor allowed him to satisfy his life-long love of working with his hands and pursing ever-new home improvement projects both for himself, his church and for close neighbors. He was a true handy-man, who was always drawn to do-it-yourself projects and home repairs. He could frequently be spotted on a ladder cleaning his gutters or making roof repairs well into his eighties and nineties to the horror of neighbors and family members. He also enjoyed gardening, landscaping, fishing, hunting, and any outdoor activity.
Robert, known by close relatives as Robert E., was a long time member of Eudora Baptist and Cordova Baptist Church, and when he could no longer drive, he attended Trinity Baptist Church. He loved the Lord, his church, his family, and his beloved wife to whom he is happily reunited in heaven.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Shirley Ruth Williams and is survived by his sons, Michael Bryant (Janice) and Ronald Bryant; brother, William Ingram Bryant (Patti); grandchildren, Amanda Hall (Brandon); Ashley Roseberry (Cubbins); and great granddaughter, Sloan Roseberry.
Funeral services will be at 10 am Tuesday, May 7 at Memphis Funeral Home and Memorial Gardens, 3700 N. Germantown Road, Bartlett, Tennessee with visitation beginning at 9 am. Interment will follow in Memorial Gardens.
