Obituary - Oren Dale Hatfield

Home

Oren "Dale" Hatfield, 84, of Bedford, died at 12:55 p.m. Wednesday at Westview Nursing & Rehab in Bedford.

Born April 9, 1926, in Lawrence County, he was the son of Oren Vestal and Lillian "Bib" (Turner) Hatfield. He married Dorothy Ann Williams on July 19, 1947, and she preceded him in death on April 20, 2008.

He was a tool & die maker at GM Powertrain, retiring in 1980 after almost 32 years; he was also a minister, having pastored Liberty Baptist Church for 30 years, retiring in 2008.

He grew up in Needmore and graduated from Needmore High School in 1944. He also completed GM Technical Training.

Dale became a Christian in about 1960, and became a member of Englewood Baptist Church, where he became a Sunday School teacher and was also a deacon. He later became pastor of Liberty Baptist Church in Mitchell.

Dale enlisted in the Navy and was in The Amphibious Corps., landing troops in the invasions of Pacific islands, including Okinawa and Iwo Jima.

Dale liked to hunt and fish from the time he was a boy. He has always been an excellent marksman and put food on the table. He was an expert fisherman, able to use any type of tackle, including a fly rod. With these tools, he supplied hundreds of pounds of fish for our family and other families as well.

Surviving are three sons, James Dale (Denise) Hatfield and Timothy Lew (Carolyn) Hatfield, all of Bedford, and David Lee (Elizabeth) Hatfield of Camby; two daughters, Sandra Gail (Ron) Mundell of Terre Haute, and Brenda Sue (Jim) Adams of Coos Bay, Ore.; several grandchildren and great-grandchildren; one sister, Bonnie Hatfield Kruchten of Bedford; one sister-in-law, Rosemary Hatfield of Bloomfield; and several nieces, nephews and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents; wife; and brother, Warren Hatfield.

Funeral service will be at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Englewood Baptist Church with Pastor David Ferry officiating. Burial will be in Cresthaven Memory Gardens with graveside rites by American Legion Gillen Post No. 33.

Friends may call from 4-8 p.m. on Friday at the Ferguson-Lee Funeral Home in Bedford.