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In Loving Memory of
France Whitt
France
Whitt, 92, of Riverbend,
Pearisburg, Virginia, returned to the arms of his family in heaven on
January 16, 2007. His loving wife of 28 years, Jewell “Judy” Whitt
remains to cherish his memory.
France
was born on June 24, 1914, a son
of the late Milburn Lee and Lilly Mae Bandy Whitt. He was predeceased by
11 of his brothers and sisters, and is survived by one brother, Norman
Whitt, of
Virginia Beach
, and numerous nieces and nephews. France
enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War II, serving with honor in the
South Pacific until enemy fire inflicted a serious wound that pained him
for the rest of his life. Upon
France
’s return from the war, he was employed at Hercules Incorporated
(Radford Army Ammunition Plant) until his retirement in 1975. In 1970,
during
France
’s tenure at Hercules, he received the Cost Improvement Crusader Award
for providing an ingenious solution to a costly problem that had been
plaguing the company for years. Maintaining
the natural beauty of
Giles
County
was one of
France
’s lifetime commitments, and
he served on the
Keep
Giles
County
Beautiful Commission for a number of years. In
the mid-1990’s,
France
began the creation of Riverbend, a blue-ribbon development overlooking the
New River
. At the time of his death, he and his wife, Judy, maintained their
residence at Riverbend in a house they designed and built together. In
2001,
France
saw the fulfillment of one of his dreams with the establishment of
Whitt-Riverbend
Park
, a 28 acre low-impact public recreation area featuring nearly a mile of
frontage along the
New River
.
France
was a dedicated member and
supporter of
Redeemer
Evangelical
Church
in Pearisburg. He was one of the signatory members when Redeemer was
formed in 1960. France was tireless in his service to the church, serving
on Redeemer’s church council for many years. He was also an active
member of the church’s property committee and the church choir.
France
attended church weekly until the last weeks of his life and continued to
serve as a church trustee at the time of his death. A
service celebrating
France
’s life was held on Friday, January 19, 2007, at Givens Funeral Home in
Pearisburg, with the Rev. Linda Mitchell officiating. Following
the service,
France
was buried at
Birchlawn
Burial
Park
in Pearisburg. Military honors were provided by VFW Post 6000 from
Narrows, American Legion Post 311 from Pembroke, and American Legion Post
68 from
Narrows
. The
family suggests that any memorial contributions in
France
’s name be made to
Redeemer
Evangelical
Lutheran
Church
, at
PO Box 15
Pearisburg
,
VA
24134
.
If you would like to send your
condolences to the family via Givens Funeral Home, simply sign the Memorial
Guestbook by clicking the link. Your condolences will be printed
out and given to the family.
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