Wayne Allen Pressley

Mr. Wayne Allen Pressley, 94, passed away Friday, May 16, 2014 at Novant Medical Center-Matthews. A lifelong resident of Union County, he was born March 16, 1920, the son of the late Arthur Olin and Alice Trull Pressley. He was preceded in death by his wife, Lois, whom he lovingly cared for during her long battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was also preceded in death by two brothers, Agee Durant Pressley and Olin Hope Pressley, and a sister, Nina Stevens, all of Monroe. A graveside service will be held 2:00 PM, Tuesday, May 20, 2014 in Lakeland Memorial Park, 1901 Lancaster Ave. Monroe, NC 28112 Mr. Wayne, as he was called, was a country gentleman. Every summer, he would grow fields of vegetables-corn, tomatoes, okra, beans-not for sale, but to quietly leave in bagfuls on the porches of neighbors and relatives. He loved to talk about the days when a pair of shoes cost a dollar, but a man only made 75 cents a day; when the boll weevil swept through the county and destroyed the cotton crop; when a ’40 Ford was the only car to drive. He was a patient cook, and delighted his family with elaborate Sunday feasts; his sweet potato pies were legendary, and in March, he cooked his own birthday dinner. Even in his final days, as he struggled with congestive heart failure, he never failed to ask his doctors and nurses, “How is your day?” Mr. Wayne was proud to say that he worked 26 years until his retirement at Charlotte Pipe Foundry, and his favorite black-and-red baseball cap featured the company’s logo. He never missed a day of work unless there was a death in the family, or he was hospitalized. He loved to bird hunt, to raise pointers and setters, and to work on his collection of Fords and his John Deere tractor. He loved to visit with friends under his big oak trees, and every Christmas he sent out more than a hundred Christmas cards. In his last moments, as his children and grandchildren gathered at his bedside, Mr. Wayne told them to “take care of each other.” He is survived by one son, Charles Pressley and his wife Donna of Monroe, and three daughters, Linda Henry and her husband Curtis, Sue Anne Pressley and her husband Walter Knox, and Joan Griffin and her husband Larry, all of Monroe. He also had seven grandchildren: D’Etta Moore and her husband Gary of Monroe; Ashley Warren and her husband Jonathan of Kansas City, KS; Tommy Griffin and his fiancée Heidi Bacon of Gray, Tenn.; Elizabeth Morris and her husband Trevor of Matthews; Brooke Griffin of Monroe; Paige Pressley of Monroe, and PVT2 Cole Pressley of Fort Drum, N.Y. There are also two great-grandchildren, Cadyn Holloway of Monroe, and Thatcher Warren of Kansas City. Visitation will be Monday May 19, 2014 from 6:00 PM until 8:00 PM Gordon Funeral Service Crematory 1904 Lancaster Ave. Monroe NC 28112. Online condolences may be made at www.gordonfuneralservice.com