JERRY HARWELL, LIEUTENANT COLONEL RETIRED Obituary – April 26, 1941 – May 17, 2020

Jerry Dean Harwell, 79, of Lakeland passed away May 17, 2020 at Baptist Hospital East-Memphis.
Funeral services will be 11 a.m. Thursday at Shackelford Funeral Directors – Crook Avenue with Rev. Dr. Joey Edwards and Bro. Gene Hanna officiating.
Burial will follow with Military Honors in Milledgeville Cemetery. The family received friends at Crook Avenue from 5-8 p.m. on Wednesday.
He was born April 26, 1941 in Milledgeville, the son of the late David Graper and Malissa Kathryn Cagle Harwell. He graduated from Chester County High School in 1959. He served in the U.S. Army and later the Army Reserve, retiring as Lt. Colonel after 26 years. He had a career with MLG&W for 36 years. He married Shirley Hale in 1987. They made their home in Lakeland, and he continued to own his childhood farm at Milledgeville.
He loved spending time at the farm in Milledgeville, being outdoors, driving the tractor and working in the shop. He loved family gatherings, social events and Cracker Barrel outings.   
He was a member of the Milledgeville Church of Christ.
He is survived by his wife, Shirley Hale Harwell of Lakeland; a son, Kevin (Cheryl) Harwell of Millington; one daughter, Melissa Harwell of Bartlett; a step daughter, Leanne Martin Edwards of Arlington; six grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; a brother, Dennis Harwell of Milledgeville; and a sister, Katie Bethune of Paris.
He was preceded in death by his parents and a brother, Carneil Harwell.