Mr. Jerry Lee Garrett, 81, of Albany, Ga., met his Lord and Savior on Sunday, August 17, 2025, at his residence after a long battle with Parkinson’s Disease.
The funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, August 21, 2025, at Avalon Church in Albany, Ga. Interment will follow in the Riverside Cemetery. The Rev. Debbie Cone will officiate.
Mr. Garrett was born on August 14, 1944 in High Hill to the late Marvin Franklin “Tinker” and Anna Katherine Lockwood Garrett. He moved to Albany in 1966 and retired from Yancey Caterpillar where he was a diesel mechanic for 40 years. Mr. Garrett was a veteran of the United States Air Force, having served during the Vietnam War. He was a jet engine mechanic with the 1370th Photo Mapping Wing where he toured the world, going to countries such as Brazil, Spain, France and Ethiopia. His last duty station was at Turner Air Force Base in 1967, in Albany, where his friend, Richard Stewart took him to their church where he then met his wife Cherry, and decided to call Albany home, marrying her after a six-month engagement. He enjoyed tinkering with any and everything. He always had a love for animals, especially cats, and for heavy machinery, tractors and trains. Jerry built a large train table diorama and loved collecting model trains and Caterpillar memorabilia throughout the years. Before his health took a downturn, you would often find him in his workshop taking something apart to figure out how it works or fixing something broken. He also loved to cut grass.
Mr. Garrett was greatly devoted to his faith and his church having served as the Lay Leader at Trinity United Methodist Church for more than 40 years until its closing in 2016. He was very dedicated to The American Legion Post #30, having served as the Jr. Vice Commander for numerous years, receiving the honor of being named Post #30’s Legionnaire of the Year twice, and serving on the Tri-County Memorial Team for years providing military honors at countless veteran funerals, NARFE and the Air Force Sergeants Association. He was also a member of The 40 and 8 Honor Society of American Veterans, Voiture #909. Many Saturday mornings were spent on the 40 and 8 train participating in many parades through the years, especially the local Christmas parades in Albany, Leesburg and Sylvester. He was always willing to lend a helping hand, no matter what the situation. Above all, Jerry was an exuberant family man. He loved spending all the time he could with his family, especially taking the children and grandchildren on trips through the years to showing his grandchildren old movies and westerns, where it didn’t matter if he fell asleep watching them or not.
Mr. Garrett would, without fail, wake up and change the channel back if you had the gall to change the channel. He surely loved to show his grandchildren his great taste in music. Some of the most fun came from taking trips back home to the family farm in Missouri. To his family, he was the perfect husband, daddy and papa, and he left a lasting impact with us all.
Taking a line from one of his favorite Statler Brothers songs, he would say “I’ll go To My Grave Loving You.”
Survivors include his wife of 57 years Cherry Lee Kitchen Garrett of Albany; children, Peggy Lee Purvis (Cory) of Albany, Paul Lee Garrett of Leesburg, Ga.,, and Paige Lee Trone (Adam) of LaGrange, Ga.; grandchildren, Garrett Martel Hiers (Summer), of Albany, Ga., Winfred “Freddie” McCollum, Keira Sky Trone, Isabell Grace Trone, Blake Oakley Trone and Dakota Purvis; siblings, Leslie “Les” Garrett of High Hill, Anita Garrett Finke (Kenny) of Montgomery City and Kathy Garrett Anderson (Lee) of Monroe City; sisters-in-law, Alice Garrett of Jonesburg and Maureen Kitchen Lyon of Albany; and numerous nieces and nephews.
In addition to his parents, Mr. Garrett was preceded in death by his brothers, Richard Garrett and Lindsay Garrett; sister-in-law, Ellen Garrett; nieces, Amanda Green Lyon, Teresa Jill Lyon Erickson and Wendy Garrett.
The family would also like to extend their deepest gratitude to Jerry’s very special VA caretakers, Melissa Cohen and Jackie Overstreet, as well as the nurses with Phoebe Hospice for all the help and support that they provided. The family would also like to extend their gratitude to Jerry’s close friend since 1965, Richard Stewart, for sticking by his side through everything.
The family will receive friends on Aug. 20 from 6 p.m.-8 p.m. at Avalon Church.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to either The Walter H. Burt American Legion Post #30, the 40 and 8 Honor Society of American Veterans Voiture #909, both at 2916 Gillionville Road Albany, GA 31721 or Avalon Church at 3018 Gillionville Road Albany, GA 31721.
Please sign the online guest registry at www.banksfh.com. Banks Funeral Home in Sylvester is in charge of arrangements.
