Walter Alan Bailey

Walter Alan Bailey, 79, of Whitney passed away on Wednesday, December 2, 2020. Funeral services will be held at 2:00 pm on Friday, December 11, 2020, at the First Church of The Nazarene in Whitney with Pastor Jeremy Page officiating. Burial will be at 1:30 pm on Friday, December 18, 2020, at the Ft. Bliss National Cemetery in El Paso, Texas. A visitation will be held from 6-8 pm on Thursday, December 10, 2020, at Marshall and Marshall Funeral Directors Chapel in Whitney.

Walter A. Bailey, Lt. Colonel, U.S. Army, Retired, was born on May 10, 1941, in Oakland, California to Walter B. and Janice Bailey. Walter (Walt) graduated from Tahoe-Truckee High School in 1959. He enlisted in the Nevada National Air Guard, completing basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. Once completing his Air Force training, he went to work for the U.S. Post Office in Carson City, Nevada as a mail carrier, then the Nevada Highway Department as a transportation planner. After completing his obligation with the Air Force National Guard, Walt enlisted in the Nevada Army National Guard and graduated from Officer Candidate School as a Second Lieutenant in 1965. While attending Air Defense Officer Training at Ft. Bliss, he met his loving wife, Sandra D. Ross and the two were married in 1967. After their marriage they moved to El Paso, where Walt went to work with the Texas Highway Department (now the Texas Department of Transportation), retiring in 2001. While working at the Nevada Highway Department and the Texas Highway Department, Walt was also serving in the Army National Guard (Air Defense and Armored Calvary) and Army Reserves (Quartermaster) including several tours with the Department of the Army at the Pentagon. He retired from the Army in 1993 as a Lt. Colonel. After high school, and while working, he attended Sierra Junior College, University of Nevada (Reno), University of Texas (El Paso), Austin Community College, and finally the University of Texas at Austin graduating in December 1982 with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Transport Management. After their retirements, Walt and Sandy moved to Yukon, Oklahoma (2007-2020) to be closer to their grandchildren. In August 2020, they moved to a retirement living facility in Whitney, where he lived until his death on December 2, 2020. Walt was active in his church (Church of the Nazarene), serving as Sunday school teacher, Church Treasurer, Board Member, and choir member. His hobbies were woodworking, golf and travel.

He was preceded in death by his father.

Survivors include his loving wife of 53 years, Sandra Bailey; mother, Janice Bailey; children, Marc Bailey and wife, Belinda, Michael Bailey and wife, Jackie, Dr. Tamara Berg and husband, Lowell, Deborah Hundley and husband, Rev. Stephen, and Laura Hunt and husband, Paul; grandchildren, Allison Bailey, Kevin Bailey, Austin Bailey, Michaela Bailey, Karsten Berg, Clayton Berg, Mackenzie Hundley, Dawson Hundley; three great-grandchildren; brother, Ken and wife, Bobbie; sister, Carol; and several nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to First Church of the Nazarene 1103 N. Brazos St. Whitney, TX 76692 or Men’s Basketball @ Southern Nazarene University.

Funeral services will be streamed live on Marshall and Marshall's facebook page.