Phillip Charles Wilburn
A Celebration of Life memorial service will be held at St. Philip Episcopal Church in Memphis, Tennessee, at a later date.
Philip Charles Wilburn, of Lakeland, Tennessee, went home to be with the Lord on Monday, May 18 (2020) at West Cancer Clinic in Germantown, Tennessee.
Charles was the first-born son of Ralph Roy Wilburn and Jenny Josephine Pascher Wilburn. He was born on Jan. 12, 1935, at Weatherford, Oklahoma. He moved with his parents to Arkansas as a small child.
He graduated from Harrison High School with the Class of 1953. He was veteran of the U.S. Army Reserves and attained the rank of Lieutenant. He returned from a trip to Washington state in the fall of 1953. At this time, he met his beloved wife of 65 years, Martha Dianne Russell. The two were married on June 26, 1954, at Bellefonte Baptist Church.
Charles and his family moved to Memphis in 1958. He was retired from E.I. DuPont after 28 years. He was a Master Welder and a Class A Mechanic, graduating from the DuPont Training Academy.
Charles was involved in many activities. He was an avid tennis player and was a member of the Memphis Men’s Tennis Association. He was a former coach of young men’s softball teams.
He was a member of the DuPont 25 Year Retirees Club, the St. Philip Episcopal Men’s Club and the Colonial Country Club. He was a 32nd Degree Mason.
Charles loved to hunt and was a member of a hunting club for more than 40 years, comprised of his best friends with whom he worked at DuPont.
Charles was a dedicated member of St. Philip Episcopal Church. He was confirmed on the same day the church was consecrated in 1981. He participated with his daughter in many of the EYC youth activities. He was an usher for many years and was the lead cook for the Men’s Club Summer Breakfasts.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his brother, Gene Wilburn (Judy); sister, Joyce Wilburn Trotter (Ralph); brother-in-law, Dwain King; mother- and father-in-law, George Taylor Russell and Arrie Louetta McElroy Russell; brother-in-law, Thomas Russell; and sister-in-law, Etta Lou Cartwright (Harold).
He is survived by his beloved wife, Martha, of the home; his daughter, Pamela Wilburn Malone, of Lakeland, Tennessee, and his grandson, Brandon Charles Malone, of Lakeland, Tennessee; his sister, Juanita Wilburn King, of Bellefonte; sisters-in-law, Jane Russell Randall (Dean) and Sue Beavers Russell; along with a host of nieces and nephews and great-nieces and great-nephews whom he adored.
Charles was a great man of faith and will be greatly missed by his family, his church and his many friends and neighbors.
A Celebration of Life memorial service will be held at St. Philip Episcopal Church in Memphis, Tennessee, at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Philip Episcopal Church, 9380 Davies Plantation Road, Memphis, TN 38133.
