MOCKSVILLE — Hoyle W. Combs, 76, 294 Will Boone Road, died Sunday (March 12, 2000) at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, Winston-Salem.

Born June 3, 1923, in Rowan County, Mr. Combs was a son of the late Loyd R. and Gertha M. Smith Combs. A Baptist, he was a former truck driver for Hendrix Janitorial.

Survivors include wife Lathel Miller Combs; son Hoyle M. Combs, Cleveland; daughters Mrs. Charles (Janice) McAbee and Mrs. Bruce (Joann)Burton, both of Mocksville, and Amy J. Cox and Sandra Christy Mills, both of the home; brother Loyd C. Combs, Lexington; sister Pauline Oliphant, Kannapolis; 10 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Services: 2 p.m. Wednesday, Davie Funeral Service Chapel, conducted by the Rev. Clyde Setteles. Burial, Liberty United Methodist Church cemetery.

Visitation: 7-9 tonight at the funeral home.

Curtis Alexander Lentz

HARRISBURG — Curtis Alexander Lentz, 69, 4718 Delrae Circle, died Monday (March 13, 2000) at his home.

Born July 6, 1930, in Rowan County, he was a son of the late James Thomas and Beulah Lyerly Lentz. A graduate of the University of San Diego with a degree in business administration, he was a veteran of the U. S. Navy.

He owned and operated a merchandise company in Southern California from the late 1960s to the early 1980s. He retired and moved back to North Carolina in 1986.

Survivors include wife Linda Nicholson Lentz, whom he married March 17, 1987; son William Curtis Lentz, Norco, Calif.; daughters Margaret Ann Moncrief and Mary Alice Chandler, both of Orange, Calif, Cathie Lentz Fryer, San Ana, Calif., Judy Ford, Moreno Valley, Calif.; stepdaughter JoAnna Brown, Kannapolis; brother Jim Lentz, Little Rock, Ark.; sister Mary Katherine Lentz, California; and 11 grandchildren.

Services: 1 p.m. Thursday, Whitley’s Funeral Home Chapel, conducted by the Rev. Otis Snow. Burial in Carolina Memorial Park with military rites by the A. L. Brown High School Navy ROTC.

Visitation: 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home. At other times the family will be at the home of Toni and Floyd Burnette, 1360 Midlake Road.

Pearlena Gadson Lindsey

BADIN — Pearlena Gadson Lindsey, 94, 100 Steward St., died Sunday (March 12, 2000) at Stanly Memorial Hospital, Albemarle.

Born Sept. 15, 1905, in Randolph County, Ga., Mrs. Lindsey was a daughter of the late Abe and Estella Shula Gadson. A retired domestic worker, she was educated in the Stanly County schools. She was a member of St. Luke Holiness Church, where she was a Mother of the Church and a former Sunday school teacher.

Her husband, William Henry Lindsey, preceded her in death.

Survivors include a host of grandchildren.

Services: 2 p.m. Friday, St. Luke Holiness Church, conducted by Elder Larry Sanders. Burial, Stanly Garden of Memory, Albemarle.

Kelsey Funeral Home, Albemarle, is in charge.

Rowland Jay Little

ALBEMARLE — Rowland Jay Little, 75, 124 Arey Ave., died Sunday (March 12, 2000) at Presbyterian Hospital, Charlotte.

Born March 17, 1924, in Anson County, Mr. Little was a son of the late Ollie Little Bogan. Educated in the Anson County schools, he was a retired concrete finisher.

His wife, Thelma Little, preceded him in death.

Services: 2 p.m. Thursday, Kelsey Funeral Home, Albemarle. Burial, National Cemetery, Salisbury.

George Alexander Page

George Alexander Page, 78, Salisbury, died Monday (March 13, 2000) at Spencer Health Care, Spencer.

Lyerly Funeral Home is in charge.

O.Z. ‘Bud’ Rutledge

CHINA GROVE - The funeral will be held Wednesday for O.Z. “Bud” Rutledge, 83, 709 Frontier Circle, who died Sunday (March 12, 2000) at the VA Medical Center, Salisbury. He had been in declining health for two years and seriously ill two weeks.

Born Jan. 19, 1917, in Dardanelle, Ark., he was a son of the late John Calvin and Mar Evelyn James Rutledge. Educated in the schools of Yell County, Ark., he retired from Linn-Corriher Mills in 1984. A U.S. Army veteran of World War II, he was a member of Mills Chapel Primitive Baptist Church.

Survivors include wife Betty Radcliffe Ruledge; sons Ronnie “Ron” Rutledge, Salisbury, and David Rutledge, Kannapolis; daughter June Marlene Rutledge Redus, Devine, Texas; two grandchildren; one great-grandchild; four step-grandchildren; and five step-great-grandchildren.

Services: 2 p.m. Wednesday, Mills Chapel Primitive Baptist Church, conducted by Elder Rom Kerley and Elder Ronnie Williams. Burial in West Lawn Memorial Park, with graveside rites by the Rowan VeteransCouncil. The body will be placed in the church at 1:30 p.m.

Visitation: 7-8:30 p.m. today, Linn-Honeycutt Funeral Home, China Grove. At other times the family will be at the home on Frontier Circle.

Memorials: Mills Chapel Primitive Baptist Church, c/o Treasurer Warren Griffin, 309 Caldwell St., Kannapolis, N.C. 28083.

Charles Edward Stoker

ALBEMARLE — Charles Edward Stoker, 80, 902 N. 11th St., died Monday (March 13, 2000) at Brightmoor Nursing Center, Salisbury.

Born Jan. 7, 1920, in Stanly County, Mr. Stoker was a son of the late John Adam and Pallie Chandler Stoker. A retired textile employee, he was a member of North Albemarle Baptist Church. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II.

Survivors include wife Nellie Upchurch Stoker; sons Charles, Michael and Robert Stoker, all of Albemarle, and Jeffrey Stoker, Melbourne, Fla.; daughters Rebecca Mintzer, Stanley, Jane Valentine, Rockledge, Fla., and Christine Bullock, Albemarle; brother Richard Stoker, New London; sister Jewel Boger, New London; 11 grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

Services: 3 p.m. Wednesday, Stanly Funeral Home Memorial Chapel, conducted by the Rev. Wyman Bolin and Dr. Grady Taylor. Burial, Fairview Memorial Park. Military rites by Stanly County DAV.

Visitation: 7-9 tonight at the funeral home. At other times the family will be at the home on North 11th Street.

Memorials: Brightmoor Nursing Center, 610 W. Fisher St., Salisbury, N.C. 28144; or North Albemarle Baptist Church, 217 Yadkin St., Albemarle, N.C. 28001.

Franklin Darell Thomas

ALBEMARLE — Franklin Darell Thomas, 19, 7798 Loxley Drive, Fayetteville, a Stanly County native, died Friday (March 10, 2000) at Cape FearValley Medical Center, Fayetteville.

Born Feb. 12, 1981, Mr.Thomas was the son of Benjamin F. and Lydia Brooks Thomas of Fayetteville. In Fayetteville, he attended 71st High School and was a former employee of Burger King. He attended Beauty Spot Baptist Church in Fayetteville.

Survivors, in addition to his parents, include paternal grandparents Maston and Annie Mae Haywood Thomas, Mount Gilead; maternal grandparents Otis and Mae Jewel Freeman Brooks; brother Corey A. Thomas, of the home in Fayetteville; and sister Comolita S. Brooks, Albemarle.

Services: 2 p.m. Wednesday, Union Chapel AMEZion Church, Albemarle, conducted by the Rev. Cecsor Raysor, pastor, and Elder Johnny Horne. Burial, Mount Zion Baptist Church cemetery, Albemarle.

Visitation: This evening, Cliffdale Christian Center, Fayetteville.