LOVELL – Dennis Gary Lovell Sr., 89, passed away Nov. 22, 2022, in Salem, Ore.
Dennis was born Jan. 2, 1933, in St. Marys, Ga., to Rufus Alexander and Mildred Lee (Bowen) Lovell. Dennis graduated from Camden County High School (Wildcats) in 1950. He was a staple of this community for all but the four years he spent honorably serving in the U.S. Coast Guard. He was proud to have served his country on the CGC White Sumac sailing the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. He achieved the rank of EN2 before being honorably discharged.
Dennis was delighted to raise his children in St. Marys, where they were members of First Baptist Church. Dennis was a dedicated Little League coach for his son’s team for many years. He loved to fish, play bingo and slot machines in Biloxi, Miss.
In 1998, Dennis retired from his position as a lab technician at Gilman Paper Company. Previously, he had worked as a commercial shrimper, home builder, postman, and dispatcher for the St. Marys Police Department. After retirement, he worked as a taxi driver and a hotel handyman.
After the 2021 passing of his second wife, Mary Helen Coffee, Dennis briefly resided with his son, Gary, and daughter-in-law, Alicia, on Sullivans Island, S.C. He spent his final months residing with his daughter, Sara Sullivan, son-in-law, John “Sully” Sullivan, and grandsons, Simon and Sawyer in Salem, Ore.
He is preceded in death by his second wife, Mary Helen Coffee; daughter, Vanessa Lynn Lovell; stepson, Tim Abbott; first wife, Judith Carol Lovell; and siblings, Marie Hunt, Melvin Lovell, Raymond Lovell and Nancy Stores.
He is survived by his sibling, Eunice Lovell; children, Dennis Gary Lovell Jr. (Alicia), Sara Lee Lovell Sullivan (John), Cara Hampton and Truth Garrett (George); grandchildren, Alexandria Lovell, Juliette Lovell, Simon Sullivan, Sawyer Sullivan, Robbie Hampton, Destinie Hampton, Jaylen Hampton, Breanna Garrett, Jordan Garrett and Erica Welch; great-grandchildren; and many nieces, nephews and other family members.
His final resting place will be with his parents, daughter, Vanessa, and siblings in the Lovell family plot in Oak Grove Cemetery in St. Marys, Ga., an 89-year journey ending a few blocks from his birthplace on Wheeler Street.