Obituary for Fred Gene Taylor Jr. Fred Gene Taylor, Jr., resident of Kingston, Tennessee, passed away July 23, 2018, at the age of 82. He was preceded in death by his parents Fred Gene Taylor, Sr. and Lucille Richardson Taylor, brother, James Taylor, and brother-in-law Arthur Desjardins. He is survived by his wife of 19 years, Carolyn Taylor (Kingston), daughter Jennifer Taylor Reeves (Robert) of Smyrna, TN, son Ronald Gene Taylor (Leann) of Baxter, TN, grandson Taylor Wayne Reeves (Chelsea) of Memphis, granddaughters Hudson Noelle Taylor, Hope Garrett Taylor, and Holly Rhea Taylor of Baxter, and sister, Beverly Desjardins of Hixson, TN.
Mr. Taylor was born on September 6, 1935, in Columbia, Tennessee. He spent most of his formative years in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, graduating from Oak Ridge High School in 1954. He was active in the Boy Scouts of America and attained the level of Eagle Scout and belonged to the Order of the Arrow.
He served in the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957 as a photographer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in Heidelberg, Germany. Upon returning to the United States, he enrolled at the University of Tennessee but later transferred to Washington State University, graduating with a B.S. in Botany in 1961. He earned a Ph.D. in Ecology in 1990 from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.
Mr. Taylor was employed by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, in the Environmental Sciences Division from 1963 to 1985. He was a research staff member for the Environmental and Health Protection Division, at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory from 1986 to 1991. From 1991 until his retirement, he was a Senior Project Manager and Senior Scientist for Hazardous Waste Remedial Actions Program at the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant.
Mr. Taylor received various professional and academic honors during his career including Marquis Who’s Who in the South and Southwest, 11th , 12th, and 15th editions, Personalities of the South 1968-1969, Xi Sigma Pi Honor Fraternity, University of Tennessee, Sigma Xi Research Society, along with 90 publications in his field of expertise. Affectionately known as Buddy, he loved hunting, fishing, spending time with friends and family, and traveling to Switzerland and Germany. His family will always cherish his sweet disposition and kind ways.
His love and respect of the outdoors and nature were apparent to all who knew him and instilled in his children. Known as Grandpa T, to a grandson he was the builder of cardboard space ships and an adventure partner at Stones River Battlefield, trail number 4. To his granddaughters, he will always be remembered for sitting on the couch exchanging stories of frolicking felines, brushing up on the latest trends of cell phone technology, and awaiting the return from hunting trips to hear the rendition of the “Great Capture” or sometimes, “The One that Got Away”….
. Per his wish, there will be no visitation or funeral services, but a Celebration of Life at a later date with family and close friends. While there will be no formal service at this time, he requested that family and friends take a moment and reflect on the poem, “Crossing the Bar”, by Alfred Lord Tennyson.
Mr. Taylor was a disciple of Christ and attended the Central Church of Christ in Harriman, Tennessee, and it is with great assurance the family knows “he met his pilot having crossed the bar”. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Spring Hill Children’s Home, Spring Hill, Tennessee, an organization he greatly respected for their work with children. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Fred Gene Taylor Jr. please visit our Sympathy Store.
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