Jerry Lee was born at home in Purvis, MS on August 1, 1945. He died peacefully, surrounded by family, at his residence in Lumberton, Mississippi, on March 11, 2023 at 4:25 PM. He was 77 years old. He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Carolyn Cameron Lee, one son, Patrick Lee (Kristen), two grandchildren; Carter Hemba Lee and Peyton-Rylei Lee (Pia), two sisters; Joyce Anderson (Grady) and Susan Southerland, one brother, Lenard Lee Jr. (Helen), and was Papa Jerry to his chosen family; Joe, Jennifer, and Angelina Courcelle, all of Lumberton, MS. He was Uncle Jerry to a host of nieces and nephews and great nieces and great nephews scattered all over the Pine Belt and beyond as he was one of seven children and Carolyn is one of nine children. He was preceded in death by his father, Lenard A. Lee and his mother, Lela Lorene Carr Lee of Lumberton, three sisters; Jeanette Herrin (Melton) and Peggy Hughes (Billy), both of Lumberton, and Barbara Patton of Purvis. Jerry was born in Purvis, MS but relocated with his family to Lumberton, MS when he was in elementary school. He graduated from Lumberton High School in 1964, where he played football for all four years of high school. After high school, he attended Pearl River Community College, where he earned his Associates Degree in Machine Shop/Metal Trade in 1966. He also joined the United States Army National Guard, attended Basic Training at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and served for 6 years. On March 7, 1969, Jerry married the love of his life, Carolyn Ann Cameron Lee of Baxterville and graduate of LHS Class of 1966. They lived in Lumberton, MS their entire lives, and eventually built a home on family land in the Little Black Creek area, where Jerry resided until his death. Jerry was a journeyman for several years as he worked for his father hauling pulp wood, as a machinist for the Boeing Michoud Plant based in New Orleans, LA, as a machinist for Camp Shelby based in Hattiesburg, MS, as a park ranger for Little Black Creek Water Park and machinist for Cooper Power Systems, both based in Lumberton, MS, a gas truck driver for Petrolane Gas Company based in Bogalusa, LA, and then as a truck driver for Miller Transporters based in Lumberton, MS. With many of these jobs, Jerry was away from home for days at a time or worked nights. As he and Carolyn had their only son in November of 1983, Jerry searched for stability closer to home with family friendly hours. He began working for the Lamar County Road Department in September of 1987, and would spend the next 20 years working there until retirement. He started out as a truck driver and worked his way up to the position of South Lamar County Road Foreman before running for supervisor in 2003-2004. He was elected as District 2 Supervisor and served one term from 2004-2008.
In his spare time, Jerry enjoyed hunting, fishing, watching football, watching westerns, following Patrick around playing sports and coaching football, traveling with family to the mountains of Tennessee, and his grandchildren could even convince him to come to the beach with them. After retirement, His favorite past time was farming and tending to his cows with Patrick, Carolyn, Joe, Angelina, Nicky, and anyone else he could rope into helping out and learning about farming. He would spend countless hours riding the golf cart or tractor and tending to his cows on his beloved “Back 40”. As much as Jerry loved and valued family and as much as he loved to farm, he love his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ first and foremost. He was a lifelong member of Little Black Creek Baptist Church where he served as the Sunday School Director for 25 years, as a deacon for approximately 20 years, and as the adult men’s Sunday school teacher for several years as well. He lived a life that brought joy, laughter, and happiness to many and constantly had a smile on his face, even as he fought cancer multiple times since 2008. He enjoyed life in a way that made you want to know why, and if you asked him, he would tell you all about where his joy came from… and it was Jesus. He will be forever remembered for his quick wit, one liners, and amazing humor. Two sayings that I will always remember are “Diesel is high. Don’t waste a pass.” and “Your name arrives somewhere before you do, so keep it worthy as a first impression.” He indeed did not waste a pass in how he lived his life and he kept his name clean as he was honest to others and respected by others. He will be missed tremendously by those who knew him, but we take joy in knowing he is without pain and he is in the presence of Our Lord and Savior. In lieu of flowers, please consider a financial donation to the St. Jude’s Children’s’ Hospital, the Disabled American Veterans Foundation, or the Shriners Children’s’ Hospital.
