Alvin Whaley

Alvin Whaley, age 78, has returned home to the Smokies. Alvin passed away at his home in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Monday, June 12, 2006, after a long illness. He was born on August 22, 1927, in Elkmont, TN, to James Harve and Letha Ogle Whaley. Alvin went to school in Gatlinburg at Pi Beta Phi. He was a member of First Baptist Church of Gatlinburg and was baptized in the Little Pigeon River. After enlisting in the Maritime Service at a very early age, Alvin served in the engineering department on a merchant ship carrying tanks and heavy equipment to our European troops during World War II. Later he was drafted into the Army and was a veteran of the Korean War. Alvin was preceded in death by his parents: Harve and Letha Whaley; brothers: John Leslie, Hansel, Hollen, and Ben, and infant sister Ruth. He is survived by his sisters: Inger Allen, Trula Bull, Eve Henry, and Kathleen Deitz, all of Knoxville and formerly of Gatlinburg. He had a host of nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews. Alvin was a dreamer, a visionary, and had a deep faith in the Lord. He was a very deep thinker, full of wit and charm, and Alvin was loved by everyone! Funeral service 11 AM Monday in the Chapel of Atchley Funeral Home. Interment will follow in Pigeon Forge Baptist Cemetery with full military honors provided by American Legion Post #104. Honorary pallbearers will be Elden Elmer, Keith Walden, Fred Ponton, Jerry Whaley, Tom Hopwood, Bob Roberts, and Joe Whaley. The family will receive friends 10-11 AM Monday at Atchley Funeral Home, Sevierville. (www.atchleyfuneralhome.com)