William C. Earnest III

William Curtis Earnest III, 74, went to be with the lord on October, 1, 2013. Visitation for Mr. Earnest will be on Thursday, October 3, 2013 at Wright and Ferguson in Clinton from 5:00pm to 7:00pm. Services will be held on Friday at First United Methodist Church in Clinton at 10:00am with visitation starting at 9:00am followed by an Internment service will be at Parkway Memorial Cemetery.

Mr. Earnest was born on May 17, 1939 in Bunkie, LA to Mr. William C. Earnest Jr. and Mrs. Gladys Poole Earnest. He graduated from LSU in 1961 with a degree in Forestry then went on to fly Jets in the Air Force. After leaving the Air Force he became a Forestry Consultant, worked as a Salesman for Texaco for 21 years and later for Ducks Unlimited for 20 years. Mr. Earnest was a 32nd degree Mason and a member of the Shriner Wahabi Temple, Blue Lodge and a member of First United Methodist Church in Clinton.

Mr. Earnest had a wonderful sense of humor and was always there to help someone in need, whether it was transporting Children to the Shriner Hospitals or just being there for a neighbor. He always liked to hunt deer, duck and turkey, fish and was an avid gardener. He was also very proud of becoming a Black Belt in Karate. Mr. Earnest Spent every morning reading the Bible while holding his beloved cat, Elvis. He always said his purpose in life was “leading others to Christ.” Earnest was very active with his men’s Bible study group in trying to get the BGEA organization to come to Clinton. He took part in the Bill Glass Champions of life prison ministry and the Kairos Prison Ministry.

Mr. Earnest is survived by his wife of 52 years, Doris Booth Earnest; son, William “Curt” C. Earnest IV; daughter, Stacie E. Breland (Terry); son, Eric Edward Earnest (Gia); grandchildren, Brittany Ivy Sanders (Adam), Sarah Grace Earnest, William “Curtis” C. Earnest V, Amy Beth Earnest Talley (Justin), and Kevin Earnest; brother, Charles E. Earnest from Bunkie, LA; sister-in-law, Miriam McCormick (Ray) of West Monroe, LA; brother-in-law, Elton Booth from Odessa, TX, two nieces; Leslie Earnest Garrett (Ricky) and Pamela Booth Parker (Jeff).

In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to First United Methodist Church of Clinton, The Shriners Hospitals or the BGEA Organization.