Graveside services for Needham Earl Ward will be held Sunday, April 7, 2024 at 2:00 pm at the Christian Valley Baptist Church in Brewersville, Alabama with Reverend Wayne Smith and Reverend Cherie Meadows officiating.

Earl passed away on March 25, 2024 at his home in Coatopa, Alabama. He was born on September 8, 1932 in Tullahoma, Tennessee to Needham and Eleanor Ward. He was the next to the youngest of six children. In his youth, he and his family resided in Thomaston, Alabama.

Earl proudly enlisted in the United Sates Navy in 1951. He retired as a Chief Petty Officer after over twenty years of service to his country. His years of service with various naval aviation squadrons and ships spanned conflicts in Korea, Vietnam, and the Middle East. During years of peace and conflict he sailed throughout the oceans of the world visiting many interesting ports of call often spending many months away from his family. He ended his service in 1975 as a member of Naval Air Squadron VR-1 stationed in Norfolk, Virginia.

Upon retirement from the Navy, Earl and his family returned home to the Coatopa, Alabama area where he embarked on a career as a successful local businessman. He later worked for, and ultimately retired from, the United States Postal Service. In his retirement, Earl enjoyed gardening and working with his vintage tractors. For many years he could be found with delicious vegetables from his garden at the Livingston and Demopolis Farmers Markets or sharing them with his family and friends. Above all, Earl’s faith in God and his love for his family were always the most important aspects of his life.

He is survived by his wife of 68 years, Patricia Larkin Ward; son, Needham Earl Ward, Jr. and his wife Lynn-Hall Walker Ward; daughter, Evelyn Ann Dahl; grandchildren, Adam Earl Ward; Alexander Hartman Ward; Brittany Dahl Alsabrook and her husband Richard Joshua Alsabrook; Katherine Larkin Ward and her fiancé Cole Jacob Dutton; great-granddaughter, Anna Katherine Alsabrook; and one surviving sister, Ethelda Jones.

The family kindly requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Brewersville United Methodist Church, 3637 Highway 28E, Livingston, Alabama 35470 or to Christian Valley Baptist Church, P.O. Box 1410, Livingston, Alabama 35470.

Arrangements made by O’Bryant Chapel Funeral Home