Bradley Woodard, 83

   Mr. Bradley Woodard, a retired Difficult Community merchant and farmer, died peacefully at his Difficult Road home at 5 a.m. Wednesday morning Nov. 12, 2008 following an extended illness.

   Funeral services from the Hackett Chapel of Sanderson Funeral Home were conducted Friday afternoon Nov. 14th at 1 p.m. Eld. Flyod Ferguson and Bro. Jackie Dillehay officiated and burial followed in the Defeated Creek Memorial Gardens. One of two children of the late Arville Banks Woodard and Clara Belle Martin Woodard, he was born Thomas Bradley Woodard in the Defeated Creek Community on February 16, 1925. On February 22, 1944 in Rossville, Georgia, he was united in marriage to the former Lucy Irene Boze, also of Defeated Creek. A daughter, Martha Jean Woodard Armistead, a 1965 graduate of Smith County High School, died on September 23, 2005 at the age of 58. Mr. Woodard and his wife established the B&L Grocery in the Difficult Community in the middle 70’s and operated a rolling store “peddling truck” for Woodard Bros. at Defeated Creek. He was an Army veteran of World War II and was honorable discharged on September 25, 1943 at Camp Ellis, Ill. With the rank of Private and had served with the 1624th Service Unit. Mr. Woodard was a member of the Defeated Creek Missionary Baptist Church. Serving an addition to his wife for over sixty four years is a daughter, Rebecca Anderson and husband Prentice of Difficult, grandchildren, Anita Stafford and husband Terry of the Highland Community, Melissa Shoulders and Husband Bruce of Difficult, Jeff Thomas of Mt. Juliet, Sharon Bingham and husband Grant also of Difficult; sister, Louetta Lankford of Carthage; step-granddaughter Penny Pelotto of Carthage; son-in-law, Freddie Armistead of Bagdad Community; eight great-grandchildren, one step-great-grandchild and four great-great grandchildren.