Roy Hampton Southern Jr.

Roy Hampton Southern, Jr., 83, of Haw River died peacefully on Friday, December 22, 2017 at his home surrounded by loved ones. Visitation will be held from 5:00 pm until 7:00 pm on Wednesday, December 27, 2017 and the Funeral Service at 2:00 pm on Thursday December 28, 2017 at the McClure Funeral Home Chapel in Mebane with interment following immediately thereafter at Oakwood Cemetery in Mebane. Roy was born in Forsyth County, eldest son of the late Roy Hampton Southern, Sr. and Ruby Mae Marshall Southern. He was also preceded in death by his brother, Marshall Monroe Southern. Roy is survived by his beloved wife of 63 years, Jeanne Phelps Southern; their six children, Lynn Rankin of Mebane, Kathleen Kinney of Eden, Evelyn (Ronnie) Stone of Sanford, Karen (Glenn) Lambert of Morrisville, Thomas (Tina) Southern of Haw River and Meg Rich of Burlington; two brothers, Phil (Nancy) Southern of Kernersville and Barry Southern of Morehead City; 13 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Entering the US Army in 1953, Roy proudly served his country for over 24 years. He served stateside in North Carolina, Virginia and Maryland, overseas in Korea, Vietnam, and in Germany on four different occasions. By the time of his retirement, Roy had amassed over 15 military awards, including: National Defense Service Medal (1st OLC), Army of Occupation Medal (Germany), Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal, Bronze Star Medal (1st OLC), Bronze Star Medal (2nd OLC), Army Commendation Medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, and numerous Medals for Good Conduct. Roy certainly did “LUV2TRVL” both home and abroad, making his way through all 50 states and dozens of foreign countries across Europe and parts of Asia. During his travels, he particularly enjoyed Volksmarching and logged over 500,000 kilometers, 10k at a time in the non-competitive form of fitness walking that all of his children have joined him on at points along the way. He also enjoyed genealogy, collecting stamps and coins and spending time with his family, to whom he was “Papa.” Always wearing a smile, he was the kindest of souls that had never met a stranger and loved dearly all those close to his heart. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him. The world traveler Papa Roy always carried a map, but he rarely needed one – he knew where he was headed -- in life and in death. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to: Hospice Care Center of Alamance-Caswell at 918 Chapel Hill Rd. Burlington, NC 27215 or to the Disabled American Veterans by visiting www.dav.org and the Prostate Cancer Foundation by calling 1.800.757.CURE (2873) or by visiting www.pfc.org Online condolences may be made at www.mcclurefuneralservice.net