Obituary of Jimmie Grant

Funeral services for Mr. Jimmie Lee Grant, age 75, of Columbia, will be held at 2 PM on Thursday, November 5, 2015, in the sanctuary of First Baptist Church, Columbia, with Rev. Eric Harriman and Rev. Shane Duke officiating. Interment will follow at New Union Baptist Church Cemetery, Tullos, Louisiana. Visitation will be held on Wednesday evening, November 4, 2015, at First Baptist Church, Columbia, from 5:00 - 8:00 P.M. Jimmie Lee Grant was born in Clarks, Louisiana, to the union of Alvin Wesley and Almar Tarver Grant and passed from this life on November 2, 2015, at Haven Nursing Center in Columbia, Louisiana. From the age of five years old, he grew up in Pineville, Louisiana, and graduated from Pineville High School and from Louisiana College. Later, he received his Master's Degree and his +30 Degree from Northeast Louisiana University (ULM) in the field of education. Jimmie's early life included serving in the United States Air Force as a Weapons Controller. His base assignments were at Fort Lee, Virginia; Clark AFB, Philippines; Tan Son Nhut AFB, Saigon, South Viet Nam; and Gunter AFB, Montgomery, Alabama. While stationed in Saigon, during the Viet Nam War period, he served in Air Traffic Regulation and Identification within the Saigon sub-sector of the Mainland Southeast Asia Air Defense Region, PARIS Control. During his term in the military he achieved the rank of Captain and was cleared for strategic top secret information when needed. After his years in the military, Mr. Grant contributed greatly to the field of education in Caldwell Parish. He served in many capacities: elementary and junior high teacher, I.E.P. Facilitator for Special Education, Assistant Principal for Caldwell Parish High School, and Principal of Grayson Elementary School. He worked with homebound education and adult education, helping those students work toward re-entering the classroom or toward receiving their GED. He loved "his" students and he continued to do so until he was stricken with Alzheimer's disease. Jimmie Lee Grant was a dedicated Christian. He served the Lord as a deacon, a Sunday school teacher for adults and youth, and as a Sunday school director for many years. He was a gentle man with a kind heart and a love for God, his country, and his family. His daughters were blessed to have a father who spent time with them, who taught them how to garden, how to fish, and how to squirrel hunt. Most importantly, he showed them how to love and serve the Lord and others. His grandchildren have memories of "piggy-back rides" and "horse-back rides" and of time in the treehouse with Papaw Jimmie. His family is thankful to have had him as a husband, father, grandfather, and even great-grandfather. Mr. Grant was preceded in death by his parents. Joining him shortly afterward was his wife of 51 years, Vera Mae Allbritton Grant of Columbia. He was survived by his daughters: Sonja Grant Carroll and her husband John; Evelyn Grant Parker and her husband Greg; his nine grandchildren: Josh Carroll (Jamie), Jason Carroll (Casey), Janna Carroll, Jade Ritchie, Eleni Ferguson (Jonathan), Gus Hyde (Chasitie Fletcher), Kyle Parker, Kelsey Parker, and Colleen Cain (Dillon); and his eight great-grandchildren: Kyndi Carroll; Bentley, Bristol, and Emma Rae Carroll; Lillian and Edwin Ferguson; and Finley and Paisley Cain. The family would like to recognize the special friends who helped sit with him in the hospital and the Veterans Home: Debra Swim, Kathy Thompson, Brian Michaud, and Brian Cubbit. Many thanks go out to the Northeast Louisiana War Veterans Home. Their care and support was vital to his well-being over the last 6 years of his life. Pall Bearers for Mr. Grant are: Caleb Duke, Allen Brown, Brian Terrell, Clay Bennett, Mitch Bratton, Scott Meredith, Clint Coates, and Jimmy Lindsay. Honorary Pall Bearers are: Raymond Franklin I, Butch Kirk, Tarby Tarver, Randall Blackwood, and the deacons with whom he had served. The family would also like to thank the staff of the Haven Nursing Home for making Mr. Grant's last days as comfortable as possible and for showing him such great love and kindness. The family requests any donations be made to the building fund of First Baptist Church, Columbia, or to the cemetery fund of New Union Baptist Church, Tullos.