John "Tommy" Kerkeles' Obituary
Tommy Kerkeles, age 85 of Nashville, TN. October 7, 2012. Survived by his loving wife of 62 yrs, Barbara Kerkeles and their children, Jean Musgrove, Mary Jane Payne, and Ken (Julie) Kerkeles; grandchildren, Angie (Jon) Janicek, Stephen Tidwell, Kathryn (Justin) Strong, Wes (Katie) Payne, Melissa Payne, Kara Kerkeles, Shannon (Geremy) Billingsly, and Kristin Kerkeles; and a host of 12 great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, Pete and Bessie Kerkeles; brother, Kenneth Kerkeles; sister, Marie Phillips; daughters, Linda and Lori Kerkeles; and son-in-law, Barry Payne. Tommy was born and raised in Nashville, TN. He attended East High School until he enlisted in the US Army. Upon his return, 2 yrs later, he attended and graduated from Father Ryan High School. If you ever met Tommy, he never forgot you and the next time you saw him he would probably say something like, “Hey Baabay”. He was a man of many talents and had numerous jobs in life; it’s hard to name all of them so here are a few. At the top of the list, Tommy was a Tennessee Walking Horse enthusiast and was a member of WHOA. He loved his horses; everything from owning, breeding, riding, showing, and even judging them. Through this arena, he met some of his best friends and brought laughter and entertainment everywhere he went. In the 1950’s he was a law enforcement officer for Davidson County and attained the position of Chief Investigator. After that he managed a booking agency for grand stand acts at county and state fairs all over the US. Some will say that Tommy had a “larger than life” personality and could be heard from anywhere, but he truly loved people and loved them well. In his 50’s he worked for Ronnie Millsap in the Country Music Industry for 10 years, which led into his retirement. Sports played a major role in his life, everything from the love of playing golf to cheering on Vanderbilt and the TN Titans. All of these things were great achievements but nothing compared to how he loved his family and his church. He was a member of Dalewood Baptist Church when he lived in Nashville and then just recently became a member of First Baptist Church Hendersonville. The family will receive friends from 4-8pm Thurs, Oct.11 and 2-8pm on Fri, Oct. 12 at Spring Hill Funeral Home. The celebration service will be held at 10am Sat, Oct 13 at First Baptist Church Hendersonville Chapel with Dr. Bruce Chesser officiating. Active Pall Bearers: Robert Phillips, Scott Hughes, Jim Gilbert, Jay Cox, Dub Hoover, and George Connors. Honorary Pall Bearers: TN Walking Horse friends. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be given to the Gideons and First Baptist Church Hendersonville Missions Fund. FBC Hendersonville, 106 Bluegrass Commons Blvd Hendersonville, TN 37075
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