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Dr Lyle Eugene Hawkins
February 11, 1932 –
September 19, 2021
Dr Lyle Eugene Hawkins died on September 19, 2021 at Union Hospital. He was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on February 11, 1932, to Charles A. and Lillian Jacoby Hawkins. He was the youngest of 3 children.
Lyle was an active member of Bellevue Baptist Church, Memphis, Tennessee; First Southern Baptist Church, Terre Haute; and First Baptist Church of Terre Haute. He has also served as an interim pastor for several churches over the years. He studied the Bible and creationism for over 30 years.
He worked at a local Memphis grocery store from 11 to 22 years old. He graduated from Central High School in Memphis in 1951. After high school, he attended the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, before joining the United States Army in 1954. He served in Germany from 1954 to 1957.
He married Elizabeth Ann “Betty” Adams in 1957, but lost her in childbirth in 1959. Their daughter survived and was temporarily cared for by her brother, Charles and his first wife.
From 1959 to 1962, Lyle first had a successful commercial career for IBM, then transferred to MCR until 1963. During this time, he obtained his Bachelor of Science in General Engineering in 1962 from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He worked as an engineer with McDonnell Aircraft (later known as McDonnell Douglas). When the Gemini space program ended, Lyle left McDonnell Aircraft, deciding to become a teacher at vocational and technical schools in the Memphis area, so that he could be his daughter’s full-time parent. He funded his undergraduate graduation with his earnings and the GI Bill.
In the fall of 1968, Lyle received a federal grant to continue vocational education teachers, which enabled him to study full-time at North Carolina State University, Raleigh. , North Carolina, while studying for his Masters in Vocational Technical Education, which he obtained in 1970. After graduating, he spent his summer vacation teaching for his doctorate at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville , in 1980, again using his income and the GI Bill to pay for the way.
He was hired as an associate professor of electronics and computer technology by Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana in 1981, where he taught until his retirement in 1997.
He married Sarah Mae Tucker in 1982. They were married for 26 years before dying of cancer in 2008. He married Pamela Kay White in 2009; she survives. He was the father of five children and had several grandchildren, great grandchildren, nieces and nephews.
Services will be held on Wednesday September 29, 2021 at 6:00 PM at Greiner Funeral Home, 2005 North 13th Street, Terre Haute, IN 47804. Visitations will be held on Wednesday from 5:00 PM until time of service at the funeral home. Private interment will be held at Elmwood Cemetery in Memphis, Tennessee on Friday, October 1, 2021. The family suggests that in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to the University of Tennessee Knoxville Education Department or to the first Baptist church in Terre Haute. Online condolences can be made to:
www.greinerfuneralhome.com
Published on September 26, 2021
