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LAWRENCE DeGRANGE, 68
Larry DeGrange and Son Excavating
ZEPHYRHILLS -- Mr. Lawrence A. DeGrange of Zephryhills, formerly of Polk City, died of cancer March 19, 2005, in Zephyrhills. He was 68.
He was a longtime resident of West Valley, N.Y., before coming to Florida. He was the retired owner of Larry DeGrange and Son Excavating and Sno-Jet Dealership in West Valley. He was a longtime member of the Springville, N.Y., Lions Club. He was a private pilot. He was a member of First Church of the Nazarene, Zephyrhills.
Mr. DeGrange is survived by his wife, Carolyn DeGrange; son, Michael DeGrange; daughter, Kathleen Hebdon; four grandchildren.
Memorials may be made to First Church of the Nazarene, 6151 12th St., Zephyrhills, 33542, or St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, Tenn., 38105, Note No. 13384704.
Memorial services will be held at a later date in April.
Whitfield Funeral Home and Cremation Services, Zephyrhills.
Willie Shelton, 78
Food Service
WINTER HAVEN -- Mrs. Willie Etta "Billie" Shelton of Winter Haven died of cancer Sunday (March 27, 2005) at home. She was 78.
Born in Blontsville, Ala., on Sept. 4, 1926, Mrs. Shelton came to Winter Haven from Houston in 1969. She worked in food service. She was a member of Faith Baptist Church of Lake Alfred.
Mrs. Shelton was preceded in death by her husband, Virgil Hugh Shelton. She is survived by her sisters, Jessie Beverly, Corene Downs, both of Lake Alfred, Louise Hollingsworth, Ringgold, Ga.
Burial will be in Tennessee-Georgia Memorial Park in Rossville, Ga.
Oak Ridge Funeral Care, Winter Haven.
CLARENCE HOOD, 38
LAKE ALFRED -- Mr. Clarence J. Hood of Lake Alfred died of liver failure Sunday (March 27, 2005) at Winter Haven Hospital. He was 38.
Born in Lawrenceburg, Tenn., on Jan. 4, 1967, he came to Lake Alfred from Tennessee in 1970. He was a Baptist.
Mr. Hood is survived by his mother, Joyce Hood, Lake Alfred; and sister, Marie Hood, Lake Alfred.
Visitation will be from 4 to 6 this afternoon at Ott-Laughlin Funeral Home, Winter Haven. Services will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the funeral home chapel. Burial will be in Oak Grove Cemetery, Lake Alfred.
MELODY GIVANS, 53
Musician
LAKELAND -- Ms. Melody Givans of Lakeland died of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis Friday (March 25, 2005). She was 53.
Born Dec. 30, 1951, in St. Petersburg, Ms. Givans came here from there in 1985. She was a musician. She was a percussionist at Gibsonia Baptist Church, and drummer and vocalist with the musical group Mel's Diner. She was a member of Kathleen Baptist Church.
Ms. Givans is survived by her father, Garfield Givans Jr.; mother, Mildred J. Givans, Kathleen; brother, Gary Ray Givans Sr., Kathleen; sister, Luanne Givans Dennis, Lutz.
Visitation will be from 1 to 2 p.m. Tuesday at Kathleen Baptist Church. Services will follow at 2 p.m. at the church.
Memorials may be made to Good Shepherd Hospice or Kathleen Baptist Church Music Department.
Lanier Funeral Home.
PAULINE POLLOCK, 82
Homemaker
LAKELAND -- Mrs. Pauline W. Pollock of Lakeland died of respiratory failure Friday (March 25, 2005) at Palm Terrace of Lakeland. She was 82.
Born July 16, 1922, in Madrid, Ala., Mrs. Pollock came here from Zephyrhills in 1988. She was a homemaker. She was a member of Kathleen Baptist Church.
Mrs. Pollock was preceded in death by her husband, Harmon D. Pollock. She is survived by her son, Dan Pollock, Roanoke, Va.; daughter, Lenora Pollock-Stokes, Zephyrhills; brothers, Royce Williams, Ruskin, John Williams, Tennessee; sisters, Frances Sullivan, Lakeland, Mamie Henry, Valdosta, Ga.; four grandchildren; one great grandchild.
Visitation will be from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Monday at Gentry-Morrison Northside Chapel. Services will follow at 11 a.m. at the funeral home.
GERALD GOFF, 62
Newspaper Carrier
WINTER HAVEN -- Mr. Gerald "Jerry" F. Goff of Winter Haven died of heart failure Sunday (March 20, 2005) at Winter Haven Hospital. He was 62.
Born in Milwaukee, Wis., on July 28, 1942, he came to Florida in 1974. He was a newspaper carrier for The Ledger and Winter Haven News Chief. He was a former member of the Lake Alfred Lions Club. He served in the Navy during the Vietnam War.
Mr. Goff is survived by his wife, Sharon Egan Goff; son, Brian Goff, Frederick, Md.; and daughter, Lisa Goff, Winter Haven.
Memorial services will be from 5 to 7 p.m. today at the family home.
Central Florida Casket Store and Funeral Chapel.
Robert Booker, 27, Student
LAKELAND -- Mr. Robert "Matt" Booker was preparing to graduate with a doctorate in pharmacy from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale and was planning to wed his fiancee of two years.
"In May he would have walked the line as Dr. Robert M. Booker, " said his father, Michael Booker of Lakeland. "My father died when I was 6, and I worked my way through college. He told me just this last year, `Dad, your father never got to see you graduate from college. I'm going to make sure that you see me, and I'm going to be the first doctor in the Booker family.' "
Mr. Booker died of an abdominal aneurysm Friday (Feb. 18, 2005) in Plantation. He was 27.
The lifelong Lakeland resident was born May 9, 1977, and attended Padgett Elementary School where he was in the Alpha program for gifted students. He attended Lake Gibson Middle School and graduated from Lake Gibson High School in 1995. Mr. Booker attended Hillsborough Community College for five years, changing his major three times before the influence of a physician/pharmacist at Lakeland Regional Medical Center inspired him to study pharmacy. After being accepted into the program at Nova Southeastern in 2000, Mr. Booker met his future fiancee, who was pursuing the same degree at the university.
"Last May, she graduated and she passed her boards sometime during the summer. He would laugh and say, `We're not getting married until I'm a doctor, ' " Michael Booker said.
"He was one of those types of people that once you met him, you never forget him. Everybody seemed to love him. He lived every day like it was his last day. He had an incredible sense of humor, a subtle sense of humor. He preferred Monty Python to George Carlin."
He was a sports enthusiast, and particularly liked hockey. He had an excellent memory for facts and was able to quote stats from the past, his father said.
In addition to his father, Michael Booker, Mr. Booker is survived by his mother, Janice Booker, Lakeland; sister, Leanne Booker, Lakeland; maternal grandfather, Paul Barlow, Zephyrhills; fiancee, Marie Freedman, Orlando.
Visitation will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Friday at Lake Gibson United Methodist Church, 424 W. Daughtery Road. Services will follow at 6 p.m. at the church.
Memorials may be made to Lakeland Regional Medical Center Auxiliary Scholarship, 1324 Lakeland Hills Blvd., Lakeland, FL 33805.
Heath Funeral Chapel.
