Joe Orr

Lowery Joe Orr, age 80, resident of Oakland, Tennessee, passed away at home after a valiant fight against pancreatic cancer.

Joe was born November 20, 1943 to the late Hugh Reed Orr and Gladys Geneva Orr in Pulaski, Tennessee. He grew up in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee and Columbia, Tennessee with his siblings Charles Reed Orr and Carolyn Orr Light. He graduated from Central High School in 1962 and moved to Memphis to attend Memphis State University. He worked at the Press Scimitar / Commercial Appeal while in school. He studied pre-med in hopes of becoming a dentist but life happened. He had a lengthy career at “the paper” until 2006.

While attending MSU, he lived in an apartment on Southern Avenue that backed up to Martha Shirley’s home. He saw her hanging laundry on the line in her backyard, whistled at her and asked her out on a date to the drive-in. That began a lifetime of love, devotion and so many memories. They would have celebrated their 59th wedding anniversary on October 16th. Together they had two daughters - Cyndi (Mitch) Morgan of Arlington and Sherry (Robert) Gardner of Memphis. They have 4 grandchildren Meredith Morgan, Collin Morgan, Grover Gardner, and Vivian Gardner. Joe (aka Pawpaw) love spending time with his family. Everyone knew they were dearly loved!

In his early days he enjoyed hanging with friends, throwing parties, and dancing with his bride and daughters. He liked riding his dirt bike and scuba diving. He enjoyed traveling, camping and cruising with family and friends. He was a True Blue Memphis Tiger fan and was always representing. He loved technology and gadgets and was always surprising us with something new he bought.

Joe’s impact on everyone he met was immeasurable. He was the friend that anyone would be blessed to have in their lives. He had a great sense of humor and a positive outlook on life. He had the calmest demeanor and was the man to have in a crisis situation. We never heard him say one bad thing about another person. He didn’t believe in swearing especially in front of a woman because he found it disrespectful. He was a penny pincher but when it came to helping others he was the most generous soul. He touch so many people and loved deeply. He worked hard so his family never went without. He enjoyed teaching his kids and grandkids life skills. If you just mentioned something wasn’t working right, he would research how to fix it and then randomly you would get a call that he was stopping by. He was so organized that it kinda drove us crazy at times. He was one of a kind - he met God the day he was born as he wasn’t expected to live and now he is at peace holding the light until we meet again.

Funeral Services for Mr. Orr were held at 12 noon Monday, October 7, 2024 at the Peebles West Funeral Chapel at Oakland. Interment with Military Honors followed in the Fayette County Memorial Park Cemetery on Highway 64.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105-9959 or Mid-South Transplant Foundation, 8001 Centerview Parkway, #302, Cordova, TN 38018.