Hugh Lee Myers

Hugh Lee Myers, age 84, of Walland passed away on Monday, December 10, 2012 surrounded by his wife, children, and grandchildren following a long and fulfilling life. He was born in Cades Cove on April 21, 1928 to Charlie and Mae Shuler Myers with the help of midwife Polly Harmon and was a great-great-grandson of John Oliver. At age 14 he found the Lord Jesus Christ in the Cades Cove Missionary Baptist Church and was a member of Morning Star Baptist Church in Maryville at the time of his death. In Cades Cove he attended the Becky Cable School and the Consolidated school adjacent to the Primitive Baptist Church. When the National Park Service took the land under emanate domain his father used some of the proceeds to purchase a farm of Walland. Hugh moved to that farm with his sisters (Louise and Hazel) (who were working at the Aluminum Company of America) where he attended Walland School for a brief period eventually returning to help his father on the farm in Cades Cove. He married Verna Lee Burchfield and initially farmed Cades Cove with his father (Charlie), through the later years with his children, and eventually with just his son Rick. Through his life he watched the Cove evolve from a true farm with row crops, to cattle and hay, and eventually to only hay. As a child he walked to the Becky Sugar Cove in late fall to gather apples under the snow and leaves and he made trips to harvest chestnuts and chinky pins. Hugh owned and operated the Cades Cove riding stables for years with his family to include children and grandchildren until 2009. For 80 years he lived and leased some part of the original family farm in Cades Cove. He loved to travel and especially enjoyed Alaska. In the weaning years following the loss of the lease he had difficulty realizing the stables no longer belonged to him. His wish was almost daily to "go home" to Cades Cove and feed the cows, mow the hay, saddle to horses, or just drive around the loop and sit and enjoy the view at many of the old home sites which held a special memory for him. The National Park Service helped him realize some of his wishes by allowing him to be driven to locations which were not handicap accessible. One of those last trips was to the "red barn" where he had fed yearlings in the 1960's before they were shipped to market. In 2009 he enjoyed a helicopter trip over Gregory Bald, Spence and Russell Field, and Thunderhead to see them one last time. Preceded in death by: Parents, Charlie and Mae Shuler Myers; Sister, Hazel Myers Beaty; Brother, Ray; Beloved Grandson, Shawn Myers; Son-in-law, John Johns. Survivors include: Wife of 64 years, Verna Lee Burchfield Myers; Son & Daughter-in-law, Rick & Sherry Myers; Daughter, Judy Myers Johns; Daughter & Son-in-law, Bonnie & Ray McCampbell; Son & Daughter-in-law, David and Linda Myers; Granddaughters, Regina Warnell, Michelle Myers, Lisa McCampbell Shelton, and Jennifer Myers Shelton; Grandsons, Will McCampbell & Jeffery Clark; Great-Grandchildren, Savanna Warnell (with whom he shared a birthday), Madeline, Cole, and Catelyn McCampbell, and Bryce & Braxton Shelton; Sister, Louise Myers Woodruff; Brothers, Charles Myers & P.A. Myers. Funeral service will be at 7:00 PM, Thursday, December 13, 2012 at Smith Trinity Chapel. Family and friends will assemble for interment at 2:00 PM, Friday, December 14, 2012 at Grandview Cemetery. Family will receive friends from 5:00 until 7:00 PM, Thursday, December 13, 2012 at Smith Trinity Chapel. Smith Funeral & Cremation Service, Maryville, 865-983-1000, www.SmithMaryville.com. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Hugh Lee Myers please visit our Sympathy Store.