Maylon Earl Little

He was born on Oct. 11, 1935, in Winterville, NC, to Benjamin F. and Stella Norman Little. His mother was widowed at an early age, and Maylon and his eight siblings labored to keep their fam solvent. He attended Winterville H.S. where he acquired a lifelong enthusiasm for baseball and basketball. Post-graduation, he entered the U.S. Air Force, serving mostly in Charleston, SC, from 1955-59. In 1958, he married Linda Jane West of Kinston, NC. After his military service, Maylon attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, graduating with a B.S. in Business Administration with a major in accounting. Maylon and Linda moved to Raleigh in 1962, where Maylon earned his CPA and joined the firm of Williams, Urquhart, & Ficklin, which later merged with Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co. In 1977, he started his own accounting firm in Raleigh. As he neared retirement he merged his firm with Lynch & Howard, CPAs (now Frost). He served several terms on the NC Board of CPA Examiners, of which he was president in 1980.

During his accounting practice he became interest in real estate and with partners purchased and renovated an historic building in downtown Raleigh. His knowledge of tax laws and investments kept him in high demand as a business partner and during his career he was in more than 20 real estate and business partnerships. He especially enjoyed being a founding partner of 1-800-PackRat. His skills also made him sought after to serve on boards of nonprofit organizations, too numerous to list here. He was fascinated by the stock market and by technology. When he finally gave up being a CPA, he continued to work hard with his real estate investments. His massive stroke actually occurred as he was sitting at his desk working on real estate transactions—he got his wish to stay busy and active until almost the end!

Maylon was interested in church, civic, and political affairs. His church growing up was Reedy Branch FWB in Winterville. Maylon and Linda were later active members of Parkwood Baptist Church in Durham, and Emmanuel Baptist, Crabtree Valley, and Hayes Barton Churches in Raleigh. Maylon was frequently in a leadership position. He was a longtime member of the North Raleigh Exchange Club, serving in many offices; he was the state president of the Exchange Clubs of North Carolina in 1976, during which time he enjoyed their sponsorship of the Freedom Train. He received the Book of Golden Deeds Award. An ardent Democrat he served as treasurer in many local and state campaigns. He was awarded the high honor of The Order of the Long Leaf Pine by Governors Robert Scott and James B. Hunt, Jr.

He actually did have some leisure time and treasured time with family and friends at the Little Family Gathering Place on the Pamlico River, where he hosted the annual day-after-Thanksgiving gathering and many other events and enjoyed boating and fishing. He also enjoyed gathering at their farm house near Kinston with the West kin. He dearly loved times with his immediate family with his children and daughter in law and his grandson’s family. In Raleigh he loved interacting with the neighbors and all their kids on his daily walks.

Throughout their 63 year marriage Maylon and Linda were devoted to each other and to supporting and promoting each other, from Air Force and college days, long careers for both, dealing with old age, and maintaining a strong family environment.

His survivors include his wife, Linda, daughter Melissa Little, son Tim Little (Margaret), grandson Alexander Little Jones (Kayla), and three greatgrandchildren, Bryson, Elianna, and Elora Jones; brothers Marvin Little (Laura) and John Little (Marlene); sisters Marjorie Everett and Jean Cherry (Jack); brother in law Neil West; sisters in law, Jennifer West and Sylvia Noble (Martin); and a host of nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews. He was preceded in death by his siblings Louise L. Pierce, Norman F. Little, William C. Little, and B. Franklin Little.

A celebration of life with livestreaming will be held Thursday, November 4, 2021 at 12:30 PM at Hayes Barton Baptist Church, 1800 Glenwood Ave, Raleigh, NC 27608. A visitation will follow the service. Please observe COVID-19 protocols of wearing a mask and social distancing.

Flowers are welcomed. Donations may be made in Maylon’s memory to Hayes Barton Baptist Church, 1800 Glenwood Avenue, Raleigh, NC 27608 or to The North Carolina Baptist Foundation, Note The Little-West Endowment, 201 Convention Drive, Cary, NC 27511.

Services provided by Brown-Wynne, 300 St. Mary's Street, Raleigh.