Doyle Roberts

Doyle went to be with his Lord and Savior on the 12th of July 2012. Funeral service will be Sunday, July 15, 2012, at 2 p.m. at New Center Baptist Church with Brother Robert "Bobby" Newman and Brother Ben Bates officiating and Roselawn Funeral Home directing. Visitation will be tonight from 6 to 8 at the funeral home. Burial will be in Roselawn Cemetery. The body will be at the church one hour prior to the service.

Doyle was born in Bradley County, Cleveland, Tenn., on October 7, 1922. He was a co-owner of the original Busy Bee Super Markets on Vine St. NW, 19th Ave. SE and Hwy. 20 W. and the Savoy Cafeteria on Bank Street with his parents and brothers, Paul C. Frank Jr. "Dude" and James "Hick" Roberts. His parents, Frank Gates Roberts Sr. and Linda Grisham Roberts predeceased him along with his predeceased daughter, Deborah "Deb" Darlene Whitt; and two brothers, Paul C. and James "Hick" Roberts.

He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Martha Ann LeCroix Whitt Roberts and two sons, M. "Keith" (Tammi) and James "Jim" R. Roberts (Pam) and two grandsons, Adam and James "Garrett" Roberts and stepgrandson, Drew Johns and one foster son, Michael "Mike" LeCroix (Cathy); one surviving brother, Frank Gates "Dude" Roberts Jr. (Mary) and one nephew, Frank "Frankie" Roberts III and five nieces, Marchetta Roberts Johnson, Paula Roberts McCaghren, Bonnie Roberts Izadi, Holly Roberts Parham and Lisa Roberts Hutto.

Doyle was a "Boxer" in his youth, boxing in the Decatur Boys Club at the Decatur Armory Building. He once outpointed "The Dixie Champion," Glenn Rogers in a 3 round win. He was a 126 lb. light weight champ, boxing in Birmingham, Atlanta, Florence and Nashville in the S.E. Newspaper articles were printed in The Decatur Daily in 1937 thru 1942, under the "Backward Glance" articles. Doyle boxed from 1937 until World War II started in 1941.

Doyle volunteered for military service in World War II on December 2, 1942, as did all his boxing friends, Moon Mullins, Wilson Campbell and J.R. Plemons. Doyle outlived all his boxing friends from the club and several boxing friends were killed in World War II. Doyle volunteered on December 2, 1942, in the Army (Air Force), and later chose the Army when the service split. He served four years in the Pacific Theatre in Australia, New Guinea, Luzon, Philippines, Okinawa and Ryukyus. After the war was won, he was sent to Korea for several months to build roads, runways and barracks for our Korean soldiers. He was finally Discharged Honorably on December 15, 1945.

For serving in the Pacific Theatre, he received the Philippines Liberation Ribbon, two Good Conduct Ribbons; two Good Conduct Ribbons (Army), the World War II Victory Ribbon, the Asiatic Pacific Campaign Ribbon 1941-1945, and the United States of America Campaign Ribbon. He was wounded in the Philippines. He served in the "T", 5th (306-Bomb Wing) Army-Air Force as a Corporal T-5 and was discharged from the Army's 1946 Engineer Service Company (Aviation) Engineering.

Doyle was a Christian and was saved and baptized in May 1962 at Southside Baptist Church by Reverend J.W. Johnson and at his death was a member of New Center Baptist Church. His pallbearers are Robert Freeman, Phillip Sherman, Bobby Thomas, Frank "Frankie" Roberts III, Bill Parker and Pat Halbrooks.

His honorary pallbearers are Frank Harrison, Doyle Bryant, Harvey LeCroix and Larry Dillard.

Doyle suffered from a very rare disorder of chari-syringomebia of the spinal cord since 1993.

Doyle was a very beloved husband, brother, father, grandfather and uncle. He will be greatly missed by family and friends. He never met a stranger and loved to tell stories, jokes and kept everyone laughing, especially his World War II stories.

He lived to be 89 and he was a lifetime member of Elks Lodge No. 655 of Decatur. He loved to tell the story of his parents and him coming to Decatur from Tennessee and Scottsboro riding the River Ferry across the Tennessee River (no bridge) and starting up the grocery stores called "Live and Let Live" and the Busy Bee Super Market in 1926.