Palestine High School Alumni Association

Clements Clifford Liles

01 / 26 / 1923  –  05 / 18 / 2006

“He plays a trombone, You’ll hear him someday on a victor.”

Memorial services for Clements Clifford “Pete” Liles, 83, of Emerald Bay on Lake Palestine near Bullard, are scheduled for 3 p.m. Wednesday with Pastor Jay Riley of Emerald Bay Community Church and the Rev. Lynn Wilhite of First United Methodist Church of Elkhart officiating.

Local arrangements are being handled by Lloyd James Funeral Home in Tyler. Burial will be in St. Luke’s Episcopal Church’s columbarium in Grants Pass, Ore.

Mr. Liles died Thursday at Hospice of East Texas’ Home Place.

He was born January 26, 1923 in Jacksonville to Samuel Isaac Liles and Mary Agnes Stripling Liles. The family later moved to Palestine, where he grew up among his four brothers and two sisters. He graduated in 1940 from Palestine High School, where he played trombone in the band.

Mr. Liles attended Baylor University for two years, then worked in the shipyards in Pascagoula, Miss., as part of the civilian effort during World War II. In 1942 he joined the U.S. Army, then transferred to the Army Air Corps, which later became the U.S. Air Force, and was trained to fly P-47s. After the war, he attended the University of Texas at Austin on the G.I. Bill for two years, studying engineering.

On Dec. 25, 1947 Mr. Liles married Barbara Ann Darnall in Palestine. He wife preceded him in death in 1996. They had two daughters, Susan and Elizabeth.

Mr. Liles first joined his father selling life insurance for Southwestern Life, then took a job with Bethlehem Supply Company in Kilgore selling oil field supply equipment. The company transferred him to Magnolia, Ark., where he spent four years, then in 1956, he was transferred to Shreveport, La.

In 1965 he joined Christensen Diamond Products selling diamond drill bits for oil drilling and overseeing coring operations. In 1967 he was transferred to Laurel, Miss., then to Whittier, Calif. and later to Ventura, Calif.

In 1971 he joined Christensen’s overseas division and spent two years in Singapore. He returned to Houston, then took a position as sales manager with Christensen in Bakersfield, Calif.

He retired in 1998, and that same year, he moved to Grants Pass, Ore. In 1998 he moved to Emerald Bay on Lake Palestine.

Mr. Liles was a member of Emerald Bay Community Church, a member of the Men’s Golf Association at Emerald Bay and a member of the Emerald Bay Singles Group.

He enjoyed playing golf and counted five career holes-in-one among his accomplishments. He also enjoyed fishing, gardening, sailing, listening to classical music and spending time with family members and friends.

Mr. Liles is survived by his two daughters, Susan Goracke of Grants Pass, Ore. and Elizabeth Russell of Kenmore, Wash., near Seattle; two brothers, Ken Liles and David Liles of Emerald Bay; two sisters, Bessie Cely of Emerald Bay and Pat Ritchey of Tyler, and three grandchildren.

Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of East Texas or to the charity of one’s choice.

Source: Palestine Herald-Press 05-21-2006