C. Earl Gillespie Jr.'s Obituary
Earl was born on August 20, 1942 to Clarence Earl Gillespie, Sr. and Dixie Ruth Denton Gillespie. He was in the fourth graduating class at White Station High School where he was an outstanding athlete. He was in the state finals of the mile run two years, was the first White Station athlete to win, he was the district leading scorer in basketball, and the first All-Memphis basketball player from White Station. After graduation from White Station, Earl attended Georgia Tech where he numbered in freshman basketball, track, and lettered in varsity cross country. He later transferred to Christian Brothers College where he was the leading scorer and titled most valuable basketball player his senior year.
While at Georgia Tech, Earl and several of his friends attended the Georgia Tech - Alabama football game after which, blind dates were arranged for the Tech guys. Earl's date was Jane Dudley, their relationship blossomed over time and they were married in 1965.
Earl received his BS in Mechanical Engineering from CBC and an MS in Civil Engineering at UT Knoxville, thus gaining an interest in engineering and construction career. He began his career teaching Engineering at CBC, where he was also an assistant basketball coach, and head baseball coach. His 1970 baseball team record of 38 wins and 12 losses is still the best in CBU history. Earl obtained his Professional Civil Engineering License and worked in residential construction until the housing market crashed in the 1970's. At that time, he was able to secure a two year contract as a Project Engineer during construction of the Valdez tanker terminal on the Trans Alaska Pipeline. After his return to Memphis, he worked three years as an estimator/project manager for S & W Construction building docks, silos, and material handling facilities. The next eight years were spent as an estimator/project manager for McMurry Construction building hotels and motels in the southeastern US. The last thirty years of Earl's professional career was spent as an owner of Mid-South Paving Maintenance.
Earl had a love for plants and gardening (which Jane shared), there was rarely any time of the year when something was not blooming at their house. They also won many ribbons at the Mid-South Fair at the Fairgrounds. Earl also had a passion for youth basketball where he coached for various schools, organizations and AAU programs for many years. Before adjustable goals were common, Earl received a US Patent for a structural frame to support a second backboard at a lower height for younger teams making it possible to compete at any gymnasium. Earl enjoyed his family, his friends, and looked forward to treating them to his special recipes at UT tailgates.
He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Jane Dudley Gillespie. His sons Lance Gillespie (Ihovana) of Miami, FL; Denton Gillespie (Amber) of Knoxville, TN. His grandchildren: Ashley Gillespie, Alex Gillespie, Julia Gillespie, Maizie Gillespie, Emma Gillespie, Connor Ellerbee, Cooper Ellerbee; and his siblings Ruth Vineyard (Tim), Paul Gillespie (Jane), Jim Gillespie (Beth), and Sarah Hermetet (Dave).
In lieu of flowers, donations to Christian Brothers High School or Christian Brothers University are greatly appreciated.
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