Willie Reese

DEXTER -- Willie R. Reese, 77, died May 19, 2003, at his home.

Born June 4, 1925, in Dexter, son of the late William Hamilton and Emma Asilee McFarlan Reese, he had lived in Dexter most of his life, where he was a retired farm worker and affiliated with the Baptist Church. A U.S. Army veteran, he was a lifetime member of the Disabled American Veterans and the Blinded Veterans of America.

On April 13, 1946, in Piggott, Ark., he married Genevieve Wilkes who survives of the home.

Other survivors include: five sons, Jimmy Reese, Danny Reese, Michael Reese and Jeff Reese of Dexter and Perry Reese of Sikeston; two daughters, Janice Sugg of Dexter and Judy Rainey of Memphis, Tenn.; and 18 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

One son, Roger Reese, preceded him in death on May 19, 1996.

Visitation is from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Watkins and Sons Funeral Home in Dexter, where services are scheduled for 2 p.m. Thursday. The Rev. Chuck Hull of Puxico and the Rev. Vaughn Wright of Dexter will officiate.

Burial will follow.