Chancie Pylant

Chancie L. "Mr. Rudy" Pylant passed away at his home on Sunday, December 7, after a long battle with cancer. He was surrounded by his children and friends.

Mr. Rudy was born on July 19, 1921, on his parents' farm near Leachville, Ark. He grew up during the Depression in a large, close-knit family. Like most people during that time he worked on the family farm, picking cotton, where he learned the value of hard work and dedication to the family. He was a 1939 graduate of Cardwell High School. He was working in St. Louis when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. He returned home and went to Memphis to enlist in the Army. He was stationed in the South Pacific during World War II.

When the war ended Mr. Rudy returned home and got his first job in broadcasting, working at a radio station in Orlando, Florida. He moved back to Arkansas in 1947 and began working at KBTM radio in Jonesboro. In July of 1948 he moved to Kennett where he began working for KBOA radio. Mr. Rudy has been on the air for over 55 years; most recently at KOTC radio in Kennett.

Mr. Rudy owned and operated several area radio stations and he was a co-founder of Walker and Associates Advertising Agency in Memphis, Tenn. He was an avid golfer, public speaker, and lead singer of "The Redneck Rhythm Rangers." He loved all varieties of music, he took great pride in his country, his community, his friends and his family.

Mr. Rudy married Bernice Davis in 1950 and together they had three children. Bernice passed away after her battle with cancer in October of 1969. In 1971, he married Sara Ann Sexton and they had one son. They combined their families and raised 6 children: Pamela, Jeffery, David, William, Camille and Matthew.

Mr. Rudy was preceded in death by his parents Chancie Everett and Macy Elizabeth Pylant, his first wife Bernice Davis Pylant, and his brother Max Pylant. Mr. Rudy is survived by his sister, Billie Fern Garver of Leachville, Ark.; brothers Jack Pylant of Iuka, Miss., Ira Pylant of Memphis, Tenn., and Ted Pylant of Jonesboro, Ark.; daughter Pam Pylant Bankston of Mountain Brook, Ala.; sons Jeff Pylant of Naples, Fla., David Pylant of Columbus, Kan., and Matt Pylant of New York, N.Y.; stepson Will Sexton of Dallas, Texas; step-daughter Camille Sexton Lockhart of Springfield, Mo. He has two grandsons, David Bankston and Chris Bankston, both students at the University of Alabama and ex-wife, Sara Ann Pylant Wright of Thayer, Mo., countless cousins, nephews and nieces and numerous friends whom he loved like family.

Visitation will be at McDaniel Funeral Home of Kennett on Tuesday, December 9 from 6-8 p.m. Funeral Services will be held at the Pentecostal Church of Kennett on Wednesday, December 10 at 1 p.m. There will be a private burial service.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that, in the true spirit of Mr. Rudy, you donate your time and visit a local nursing home. Or, you may make a donation to the National World War II Memorial: 2300 Clarendon Boulevard, Suite 501, Arlington, Virginia 22201, or call: 1-800-639-4WW2. You may also make a donation to the Rudy Pylant Charitable Foundation at Kennett National Bank.

--Paid obituary