W. Cecil Carpenter, Southern States manager
W. Cecil Carpenter, 88, of Milford died Sunday, May 29, 2011, at Milford Memorial Hospital.
Mr. Carpenter was born Jan. 9, 1923, the son of William B. and Bessie Carpenter of Ellendale.
Mr. Carpenter attended Milton High School and the University of Delaware and was the manager of Southern States in Milford for over 30 years. During his tenure, the cooperative became the largest volume retail store in the Southern States distribution network. He is the past president of the state board of agriculture, chairman of the Delmarva Chicken Festival, member of the Delmarva Poultry Industry, the Delaware Farm Bureau and a long term member of the Delaware State Fair Board of Directors. He was a director of the Sussex Trust Bank and served on the advisory committee of Wilmington Trust Co.
Mr. Carpenter was a 32nd Degree Mason and a member of the Masonic Lodge in Milton. He is also a member of the Nur Temple of Wilmington, the Eastern Star of Georgetown, the Ruritan Club of Ellendale and past president of the Milton Lions Club.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Helen W. Carpenter, to whom he was married for 58 years.
Mr. Carpenter is survived by his daughter, Jerry Ann McLamb and her husband Don of Milton; his son, Superior Court Judge the Hon. William C. Carpenter Jr. and his wife Marilyn of Wilmington; four grandchildren, Sandra G.M. Selzer and husband Christopher of Avondale, Pa., Donald R. McLamb Jr. and wife Tracy of Bear, Sarah Allison Carpenter Johnson and husband Andrew of Wilmington and Richard L. Powers Jr. and wife Kit of Miami, Fla.; and four great-grandchildren, Hannah Gracyn McLamb, Kelsie Anne McLamb, Abigail Helen Selzer and Luke William Johnson.
Funeral services will be held 2 p.m., Saturday, June 4, at Short Funeral Services, 416 Federal St., Milton, where friends may call beginning at noon. Burial will be in Odd Fellows Cemetery in Milton, following the service.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions to the Delaware Agriculture Museum, 866 N. Dupont Hwy, Dover, DE 19901.
