Willard Albert Douglas

On Wednesday, September 7th, Willard Albert Douglas passed away. Willard was born to Albert James and Bertha Mae Douglas. The middle child of seven, Willard was fond of saying the older three picked on him and the younger three tattled to get him in trouble. As a young man, Willard joined the Navy and traveled the world. He learned to fix anything with his hands and a set of tools. Later he became one of the best welders in the South and worked his way up to become a maintenance supervisor of Gulf Power Crist Plant until retirement in 2005. He enjoyed visiting with his brothers every Sunday morning, an event he called the Board Meeting.

Willard was a great father and had a fun sense of humor. His sons, Burt and John, enjoyed participating in a long running joke about who was his favorite. Of course, the joke was Willard’s pick of ‘favorite’ son would change weekly, and he would say things like, ‘Well, you know your brother dropped off BBQ yesterday and helped your mother move the table in the sewing room. I’ll tell ya, he’s in that number one spot, that boy.’ As a grandfather, Willard shined his brightest. He was amazing with his grandkids and he’d proudly advertise this by wearing the t-shirts they gave him… and he would wear them often, ‘the World’s Greatest Papa’, and ‘Grandfather of the Year’, to name a couple he had in his collection. His grandchildren adored him, too. He enjoyed taking them out countless times for treats and ice-cream, but we suspect it was he that really wanted the treats and ice cream.

Willard enjoyed working on things at home. There was always something dismantled and in process of repair, or a project of interest in progress in his barn, but priority was given to the ‘honey do list’ that his beloved wife, Brenda, would frequently update. Willard stocked his pond with catfish and bream and taught his grandkids how to fish. They learned how to bait a hook and reel in the big ones on kid sized Looney Tunes fishing poles he bought them. His grandkids would visit almost every week, even as they entered college. In Willard’s barn on a workbench, a small Tweety Bird fishing pole can be found. Each of his grandkids hold the record for catching the biggest catfish in the pond using that pole. Ol’ Tweety is kept ready for action and occasionally still sees it.

Willard Albert Douglas is survived by his wife, Brenda Douglas, his sons James Burton Douglas and John Edward Douglas and his daughter-in-law Raenee Douglas, his brother Larry Douglas and his sister-in-law Pat Douglas, his sister-in-law Clete Douglas; sister-in-law Margie Bufkin and sister-in-law Greta Nolan and many nieces and nephews.

Willard Albert Douglas was one of a kind. He will be dearly missed by his family and friends.

Burial Service will held at Robert's Cemetery, 3399 Creighton Rd, Pensacola, FL 32504 on September 27, 2022 at 10:00 am

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.BayviewFisher-PouChapel.com for the Douglas family.