Samuel Patteson Clarke (1966)

  USN CWO3 (Retired) Stevean Edward Irving, 62, of Gordonsville, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his wife, children, and grand-children on Thursday, August 14, 2008, after a hard fought battle with cancer.
  He was born August 31, 1945, in Charlottesville, Virginia, to James Edward and Ruth Wood Irving.  He was left in the care of and raised by his loving grandparents Noel and Anna Wood, whom he called Daddy and Momma.
  He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Noel and Anna Wood; parents, James Irving and Ruth Parks; and stepfather, Julian Parks; sister, Era Kay Parks; and father-in-law, James Marshall. He was also preceded in death by his uncles, Curtis, Nathan, Reuben, Franklin and Pete Wood, with whom he was raised.
  He is survived by his loving and devoted wife of 37 years Shirley Marshall Irving.  His children, Stefanie Irving McCoy and her husband, Matt, of Chandler, Arizona, Alisha Lee Irving Vines and her husband, Mason, of Gordonsville, Nikki Irving Rigsby and her husband, Wayne, of Palmyra; and son, Stevean Edward Irving II of Gordonsville; his grand-children, Sydney, Lindsay and Riley McCoy, John Mason and Chayse Vines, and Trey and Dakota Rigsby. He was honorary "Poppa" to Kaitlyn and Gage May.  He was very proud of and loved all of his children and grandchildren.
  He is also survived by four sisters, Linda Jennings and husband Bill, Phyllis Tubbs, Deborah Taylor and her husband, Steve, and Julia DeWitt and her husband, Malcolm; three brothers, William Irving, Joseph Irving and Earl Parks and his wife, Laura; his lifelong, best friend, Walter Quast and his wife, Linda; mother-in-law, Pearl Marshall; three sisters-in-law, Helen Marshall, Ethel Hutchinson and her husband, Bill, and Rachel Collier and her husband, Tommie; three brothers-in-law, Jimmy Marshall and his wife, Linda, Kenneth Marshall and Melvin Marshall and his wife, Teresa. He is also survived by many cousins, nieces, nephews and friends.
  He graduated from Albemarle High School in August 1965.  He was then drafted into the military and on November 4, 1965, joined the Navy.  He went to the Great Lakes Training Center for Boot Camp.  His first tour of duty was a special tour at Ellison Field, Pensacola, Florida with Helatron 8 Helicopter Squadron.  After serving in Pensacola, he went to the heavy cruiser, USS Canberra CAG 2 to leave for a tour in Vietnam spending most of his time on Yankee Station doing gun fire support. He was then stationed in Yokoska, Japan. The USS Canberra was one of the ships deployed to North Korean waters during the high-jacking by the North Koreans of the USS Pueblo. He saw much of Southeast Asia, including South Vietnam, North Vietnam, North Korea, Hong Kong, Japan, the Philippines, Guam, and Hawaii. After leaving Vietnam, he transferred to the East Coast and was assigned to the USS Neosho AO143 out of Norfolk, Virginia.  Arriving only six days out of Vietnam, he was deployed to the Mediterranean. While on the USS Neosho he was able to visit Spain, Italy, Greece, Great Britain, Germany and the Island of Malta.  He spent the next two years in the Mediterranean and the Caribbean.  In the Caribbean, he visited the islands of St. Thomas, St. John, St. Croix, and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
  In September, 1976, he joined the US Navy Reserves and was stationed in Staunton, Virginia. During his tour in the Naval Reserves, he was attached to the following units: Military Sealift Command, Navy Seal Boat Crew out of Little Creek, Virginia, served in Special Weapons at Naval Weapon Station at Yorktown, Virginia, part of the commissioning crew for the USS Shenandoah AD44 in Norfolk, serving time on board USS Waccama AO109, USS Fortify MSO 446, USS Papago ATF 160, and USS Robert A. Owens, DD 827.  He spent his last nine years with Amphibious Construction Battalion 2 (ACB2) out of Little Creek Amphibious Base in Roanoke, Virginia.  He retired January 1, 1998, as Chief Warrant Officer III with 28 years of service.
  Leaving active duty in May, 1970, he returned to Charlottesville, Virginia and went to work for Virginia Telephone and Telegraph as a lineman where he was employed for 36 years.  The company has changed names and was known as Centel, Sprint, and now Embarq.
  On May 23, 1971, he met his sweetheart, Shirley Marshall, who became his wife on September 23, 1971.  He never held it against her that she graduated from Lane High School.  The Albemarle-Lane football games were a lot of fun for them.  They would start on the Albemarle side with the agreement to move to the Lane side after halftime, but that never happened!  It sometimes made for a long night.
  In September 1973, they bought their first home in Barboursville, Virginia, moving to Gordonsville in 1986, where they still reside.  In April 1974, their daughter, Stefanie Marie, was born.  He had the honor of walking her down the aisle to marry her husband, Matt in April 2001. In May 1978, they were blessed with a second daughter, Alisha Lee.  He had the privilege of walking her down the aisle to marry her husband, Mason, in October 2002.  In May 1982, their third daughter, Terri Nikkole graced them with her presence.  He had the pleasure of walking her down the aisle to marry her husband, Wayne, in August 2003.  Their fourth blessed event happened in January 1986, when their son Stevean Edward Irving II was born.  He and Stevean were more than father and son; they were the very best of friends.
  He was very active in the community and became involved with the Gordonsville Little League and spent nineteen years coaching his children and as the Safety Officer.  While his children attended Gordon Barbour Elementary School, he was very active with the PTO serving as President and Vice President for many years.  In 1990, he became interested in local politics and was appointed for a term on the Gordonsville Town Council.  He served on the Gordonsville Town Council for 14 years, 1990 until 2008.  At the time of his death he was serving as Vice -Mayor.  During his tenure on Town Council he served on many Orange County and Town of Gordonsville Committees.  From 1990 until 2008, he was a member and also held the office of post Commander of the Gordonsville VFW; officer for the Gordonsville Little League, and served on the Executive Board of IBEW Union Local 1181.  He joined the Orange County Rescue Squad in 1999 and became a life member in 2008.  He served as an EMT-B, EVOC driver, Station Caption for Station 24 and Assistant Rescue Chief from 2005 until 2006.  He attended Gordonsville Baptist Church with his family and was baptized into the church on July 27, 2008.  He had a strong faith which he talked about openly with his wife and children.
  The family would like to express its deepest gratitude to Dr. Robert Pritchard, Hospice of the Piedmont and all of their staff for their loving care and support.
  The funeral service was held 2 p.m. Sunday, August 17, 2008, at Gordonsville Baptist Church.
  Family night was held from 6 until 8 p.m. Saturday, August 16, 2008, at Preddy's Funeral Home in Gordonsville.
  Memorial contributions can be made to the U.S.S. Neosho Association in care of Walter Quast, 204 Surrey Rd. Charlottesville, VA 22901.

Published in Orange News on August 21, 2008