Bob McCarley, 1938 – 2022

Saturday evening, Mar. 12, Bob McCarley passed away peacefully in his sleep. He was born in Greenwood, Mississippi and was 83 years old. Bob graduated from Greenwood High School and continued his education at Mississippi State University where he also joined the Air Force ROTC. In 1958 he met his future wife, Ann, on a blind date. They married after Bob graduated with an Engineering Degree and as a 2nd Lieutenant and headed to Vandenberg Air Force Base in California for 3 years to complete his obligation to the Air Force.

In 1963 they moved to Vicksburg, Mississippi with their one-year-old son, Tim, and Bob went to work for the U.S. Government at the Waterways Experiment Station as an Engineer where he remained for the next 30 years until his retirement. Bob also stayed in the Air Force as a Reservist for the next 25 years until he retired as a Lieutenant Colonel and Commander of the 917th Civil Engineering Squadron at Barksdale Air Force Base in Shreveport, Louisiana. During his early years at work, Bob earned a master’s degree in civil engineering from the Mississippi State University Extension Center at Waterways.

Bob was an avid outdoorsman, hunter, fisherman and athlete. He loved hunting duck, dove, quail and pheasants but duck hunting was his absolute favorite. During every duck season until he was 80 years old, he hunted as much as possible with his life-long friends Harry Walton and S. R. Evans. He was a very skilled dog trainer and trained many dogs throughout the years. He trained both pointers and retrievers who would accompany him while hunting birds. The last dog he had, Gabby, (who is still alive) was his favorite. She is a chocolate Labrador Retriever and has passed many AKC and UKC hunt tests. Under Bob’s training and guidance Gabby went on to claim the top awards for Hunt Tests: Hunter Retriever Champion, Master Hunter, and the AKC Master Nationals.

Bob was a member of First Baptist Church where he served in different roles for 59 years. Starting when his mother went to live in Bluff Nursing Home (formerly Trace Haven) and continuing for 25 years he served as a Sunday School Teacher at the Nursing Home along with his dear friend Margaret Patten and others. Bob was also the Scout Master of Boy Scout Troop 105 that was sponsored by First Baptist Church. Another one of Bob’s passions was playing volleyball with his friends at the Vicksburg YMCA. He played volleyball with his friends 3 times a week for 46 years. Bob quit playing at 76 years old because he was still trying to play like a 45-year-old and the floor just kept getting harder and harder when he took a spill! Bob used to pick his granddaughter, KK, up every day after school and helped her train in many different sports. She would accompany him to the YMCA where she also trained and worked out from an early age. Later on, because of her early start in athletics influenced by Bob, KK went on to become a championship Runner at Warren Central High School where she still holds two distance records.

Bob McCarley is survived by his son and his wife, Tim and Cindy and grandchildren Kailyn (KK) and Jullia.

In place of flowers or food, Bob’s wishes were to have memorials or donations made to the non-profit Good Shepherd Center Vicksburg, where his daughter-in-law, Cindy, is the Executive Director. Good Shepherd, PO Box 8115, Vicksburg, MS 39181

Visitation will be at Glenwood Funeral Home at 1 p.m. Thursday, Mar. 17 followed by a funeral at 2 p.m.

Pallbearers will be Harry Walton, S.R. Evans, Tim McCarley, and Jeff Averett. Honorary pallbearers will be Tyler Tunnell and Haden Hataway.