Robert (Bob) Staley Young

Mr. Robert (Bob) Staley Young, 79, of Valdosta, died September 24, 2009 at the Langdale Hospice House. Mr. Young was born in Baywood, Virginia, on December 23, 1929, to the late Donald Apperson Young and Lena Celia Hampton Young. Mr. Young grew up in nearby Galax, Virginia, and graduated from Galax High School in 1948. He graduated from the University of Virginia in 1952 with a Bachelor's Degree in Economics and a minor in German. After graduation, Mr. Young was drafted into the Army's Security Agency and was a Morse code interceptor stationed in Berlin, Germany from 1952 until 1955 where he translated Morse code from German into English. After being discharged from the Army, Mr. Young went to work for Belk Department Stores as a store manager and served as manager in Decatur, Alabama, Montgomery, Alabama, and Auburn/Opelika, Alabama. Mr. Young retired from Belk Department Stores after 20 years of service in 1975. After leaving Belk, Mr. Young was hired by West Point Pepperell in West Point, Georgia as a store manager. Mr. Young assisted West Point Pepperell in expanding their outlet stores in the Southeast, by opening stores in North Carolina and Georgia, including the store in Lake Park, Georgia. Mr. Young retired from West Point Pepperell in 1985. Mr. Young obtained his real estate license and worked for the Herndon Company from 1986 until 2001.

Mr. Young was involved in each community where he has lived over the years. He was a member of Toastmasters, Jaycees, Kiwanis Club, the Board of Directors for Southeastern Regional Medical Center in Lumberton, North Carolina, the Chamber of Commerce, the United Way, the Board of Directors for the Boys and Girls Club of Valdosta, and was a past president of the Valdosta Rotary Club, where he was one of the founders of the Traveler's Assistance Program and the Plant-A-Tree program which plants trees around Valdosta in honor or memory of notable Valdostans. Mr. Young was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Valdosta where he served on numerous boards, committees, and was a member of the Ralph Brandon Sunday School Class during his 27 years in Valdosta.

Mr. Young is survived by his wife of 43 years, Dorothy (Dot) Olson Young; his daughter and son-in-law, Deanne and Mike Rhoades; his grandson, Owen Channing Eldridge; his granddaughter, Lauren Taylor Rhoades; all of Valdosta; his sister, Celene Young Cornette, of Hampton, Virginia; his sister and brother-in-law, Diane and David Whitesell of Moore Haven, Florida; and three nieces and two nephews and their families.

Services for Mr. Young will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, September 28, 2009 at the First United Methodist Church of Valdosta. Reverend Mike McAfee, Reverend Bob Moon and Reverend John Harrington will officiate. The burial will follow in the McLane Riverview Memorial Gardens. The family will receive friends on Sunday from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at the Carson McLane Funeral Home. Donations may be made to the First United Methodist Church 220 N. Patterson St., Valdosta, Georgia 3160, Hospice of South Georgia, P.O. Box 1727 Valdosta, Georgia, 31603, or ACTO, the Alzheimer's Day Care Facility, Park Avenue United Methodist Church 100 East Park Avenue Valdosta, Georgia 31602. Condolences may be conveyed online at www.mclanefuneralservices.com.


Funeral Home:
Carson McLane Funeral Home
2215 North Patterson Street
Valdosta, GA
US 31602