Mr. Wayne Irvin Tapley, age 72, of New Road in Sandersville, died Tuesday, January 12, 2021 at his residence. A graveside funeral service will be held on Saturday, January 16th at 11:00 A.M. in the Washington County Memorial Gardens with Revered Danny Thomas officiating. Doug Watkins, A.D. Davis, Russell Sanders, Rusty Rhodes, Jeff Smith, Marlin Anderson, Steve Anderson, and Ashley Bridges will serve as pallbearers.
Mr. Tapley was born in Emanuel County and reared in McDuffie County. He was the son of the late Carswell Tapley and the late Pearl Woods Tapley Brantley. He graduated from Thompson High School in 1966. Wayne began his working career with Thermo King in Louisville prior to working as a licensed electrician for Thiele Kaolin Company. In 1972, he created Wayne Tapley Farms, row cropping roughly 2000 acres prior to his retirement. While retired, Wayne enjoyed growing fruits and vegetables, especially watermelon, which he would sell to the public. In 1997, he was awarded the Soil Conservation of the Year Award. He was a member of the Farm Bureau. Wayne loved the outdoors, fishing, and hunting, especially coon hunting. In addition to his parents, he is preceded in death by his siblings, Bennie Tapley, Joyce Anderson and her husband Bruce, and James Tapley and his wife Brenda.
Survivors include his wife of 51 years, Connie Bridges Tapley of Sandersville; children, Angie T. Yarbrough and her husband Travis of Davisboro, William W. Tapley and his wife Laura of Montrose, and Carmen Rodriguez of Sandersville; grandchildren, Linda Micco, Cory Adams, Holden Yarbrough, and Cale Adams; five great-grandchildren, and siblings, Wyman Tapley and his wife Ann of Evans and Judy Hargrove of Horn Lake, Mississippi.
The family will receive friends on Friday from 4:00 P.M. to 6:00 P.M. in groups of 10 individuals or less at the at the May and Smith Funeral Home in Sandersville.
Donations may be made to the Washington County Future Farmers of America, c/o Washington County High School, P.O. Box 1057, Sandersville, Georgia 31082 or to the American Heart Association, P.O. Box 840692, Dallas, Texas 75284.
May and Smith Funeral Directors is in charge of these arrangements.