William Edwin Jeter

William Edwin Jeter Sr passed away at the age of 85 on January 25th, 2022. William was born in Tippah County, Mississippi on March 22nd, 1936, the son of Walter Lorenza & Sarah Anne (Linebarger) Jeter. He was married for 62 years to Ruby Eloise Jeter prior to her passing. They moved from New Albany, MS, to Illinois in 1958. William served as the secretary and treasurer of the First Apostolic Church of Aurora under the Pastoral guidance of Rev. Billy Crane Coltharp. William was instrumental in pioneering the Sunday School Bus Ministry which focused on reaching out to children in the surrounding area, the impact of which can only be made known in Heaven. After 42 years of service at Chicago Bridge and Iron, also known as Walker Process, he retired and relocated to Maryville, TN, in 1999, where he was a faithful member of the First Apostolic Church of Maryville, under the leadership of Rev. Kenneth Carpenter, and participated in many activities with his fellow “Trendsetters”. To William, “retirement” meant becoming a Senior Partner of the family-owned, Maryville Alcoa Christian Supply Store, where he enjoyed serving the churches in the community and anyone who wandered through those doors. William was affectionately known as “Grampie” or “Pops” to anyone who knew him – and to know him, was to love him dearly. He enjoyed fishing, participating in the church’s softball league, all things Green Bay Packers, ‘pickin’ his guitar and tending to his annual garden. Grampie had uncanny accuracy playing washers or bocce (“bot-chi”) ball and there was not as single broken thing under the sun that he could not “fix” with all of the unconventional materials at his disposal. William is preceded in death by his wife Ruby, his parents Walter & Sarah Anne, sister Mary Joyce, and great-grandson, Danny-Ray Stanley Cooper. William is survived by his four children, Stanley Lee (Sheila), Claudia Sue (Robert), William Edwin “Skip” Jr (Donnita), Bobby Dale “Shorty” (Jacalyn), eleven grandchildren, twenty great-grandchildren, sister Juanita (Bobby Dean) and brothers Jerl (Martha), Charles (Rosemary), and Randy (Teresa) as well as many nieces and nephews. Family will receive friends from 6pm-7pm on Saturday, January 29th, 2022, at First Apostolic Church of Maryville, TN, where the Funeral Service will immediately follow officiated by Pastor Kenneth Carpenter. Private entombment service will be held at Grandview Cemetery in Maryville, TN. Smith Funeral & Cremation Service, Maryville, 865-983-1000, www.SmithFuneralandCremation.com. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of William Edwin Jeter please visit our Sympathy Store.