Earnest B Talley, 73, also known to his friends as Sonny or Earn, passed Monday, February 1, 2021.
Earnest was born in Farmersville, Tx in 1947 to Earnest Sr. and Doris Talley. Earnest is the 2nd of 4 kids. He has 2 brothers, Danny Talley, and Calvin Talley, and 1 sister, Anita Collins. The family moved to Garland in 1953 where he attended Garland High School. During high school, he met his wife Rita at a skating rink. Earnest and Rita married on August 27, 1966.
Earnest was drafted into the Army and enlisted on August 21, 1967. He was assigned to the 9th Infantry and was deployed to Vietnam in 1968. Due to injuries sustained in combat, he was awarded a purple heart and retired from the Army in 1969. During his service, he was awarded the National Defense Service Medal, Combat Infantry Badge, Vietnam Service Medal, Purple Heart, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Expert Badge for M-14, and Expert Badge for M-16.
In 1975, Earnest and Rita were blessed with a baby boy, Jason. Jason graduated from Texas Tech in 1998 with a Bachelor’s in Computer Science. Jason and his wife Gayle blessed Earnest and Rita with 2 grandchildren, Blake and Reagan Talley. Blake is a freshman and in the Air Force ROTC at University of Oklahoma. Reagan is a Junior at Richland Collegiate High School. These 2 grandkids were one of the greatest loves of his life.
Earnest retired from The Icee Company in 2012 after 27 years of service. During his golden years, he enjoyed spending time fishing, camping at the lake, hanging with friends and family at the casino, washing his vehicles, traveling with his wife and friends, cruising, and generally spoiling his grandchildren. Towards the end of his retirement, Earnest connected with other members of his battalion and was a member of a VFW group in Mesquite. He enjoyed Wednesday morning breakfasts with this group as often as he was able.
Earnest is preceded in death by his dad, Earnest Sr, in 2009 and mother, Doris, in 1998. Earnest is survived by his wife Rita, his son Jason and wife Gayle, and their children Blake and Reagan. Earnest is also survived by his brothers and sisters, Danny and his wife Fay, Calvin and his wife Rose, Anita and her husband Jerry.
Please join us for a viewing, open to all friends and family on Wednesday, February 24 from 9:00-11:00 AM at Gateway Funerals and Cremation (17390 Preston Rd. Suite 310, Dallas, TX 75252.)
Earnest will be laid to rest in the DFW National Cemetery on February 24 in a private graveside service.
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Earnest’s name to one of the following charities:
The 1LT Robert F. Welch III Charity - https://www.1ltwelchrunforourheroes.org/
Disabled American Veterans (DAV) - https://www.dav.org/
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