Shirley Thomas King

Shirley Thomas King, 76, resident of the Canaan Community and a person active for many years in the business, religious and community affairs of Benton County, passed away peacefully Wednesday afternoon May 31, 2017 at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis following a brief illness.
  Funeral Services celebrating the Christian life of Mrs. King will be at 11 AM Saturday June 3 in The Heritage Chapel of Ripley Funeral Home with Bro. John Franklin, Pastor of Hamilton Baptist Church officiating. Burial will follow in the Hamilton Cemetery in Benton County.
  Born January 12, 1941 in Prentiss County, she was one of nine children born to the late James Arlis and Luna Bell Johnson Thomas. Mrs. King was a graduate of Pisgah High School in Prentiss County where she was a member of the school basketball team.
  She was married on May 4, 1959 to Norris Tate King, retired merchant and owner of King's Auto Sales in Benton County who preceded her in death on January 10, 2013. Mr. and Mrs. King moved to Benton County in 1968 and will be remembered by many as the owners of King's Grocery Store in the Canaan Community for a number of years before their retirement. Mrs. King was also employed as Assistant Manager of the Ashley Retail Store in Ripley. A Christian and a lifelong Baptist, Mrs. King was a member of the Canann Baptist Church and in recent years enjoyed attending Hamilton Baptist Church with family and friends.
  Mrs. King will also be remembered as a family oriented person who enjoyed crocheting, quilting and cooking for family dinners. Many requests came from her family and friends for her famous "Chicken and Dumplings" that no one seemed to duplicate. She was an active member of the Eastern Star Chapter as long as health permitted.
  Visitation for Mrs. King will continue Saturday from 9 AM until service time at The Ripley Funeral Home.
  Blessed with a large loving family, those left to cherish her memory are her sons, James "Jimmy" King (Bonnie) and Steven King, both of Ashland and Jeffrey King (Lisa) of Michigan City, three sisters, Evelyn Conwill of Baldwyn, Ollie Fay Thomas of Corinth and Nancy Edwards of Ripley, TN, five grandchildren, Jonathan King (Stephanie), Stephanie Turner, Jon Harris, Zachary and Ty King, seven great grandchildren and a great great grandson.
   She was also preceded in death by two sisters, Ruby Coburn and Mattie Bell Hurst and three brothers, Clovis, Clarence and Ralph Thomas.
  Pallbearers will be Kevin James, Mark Thomas, Gary Turner, Jonathan and Ethan King, Jon Harris, Don Conwill and Larry Webb.
  The family requests that memorials be directed to the Hamilton Baptist Church Cemetery Fund, 1575 Hamilton Rd, Falkner, MS 38629.

The Ripley Funeral Home is honored to serve the King family and invites you to sign the guestbook and share memories.