Major Billy Martin, USAF Retired

Major Billy Martin, USAF Retired, age 80, of Long Beach, MS, died Wednesday, July 7, 2010, in Diamondhead. He was born November 5, 1929, in Gadsden, AL and moved to Cedartown, GA in 1942. He served six years in the U. S. Army, five of those served in Germany as a Batallion Operations Sergeant in quartermaster corps and armored tank division. He served fourteen and a half years in the U. S. Air Force, Strategic Air Command, flying B-52 and B-58 bombers and Air Force Communications Service UK Communications Region in London, England for three years. He attended the University of Georgia and graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi with a business degree. He taught business subjects at Long Beach High School and was a member of St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church. His many interests included all aspects of yard work and gardening, football, and following the NASCAR circuit. He was preceded in death by his mother, Stella Martin and his wife, Shirley Sumrall Martin. He is survived by a son, James S. Martin of Long Beach; daughter, Laura K. Martin and granddaughter, Sara Ray, both of Slidell, LA; and a sister, Doris Martin of Diamondhead. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Tuesday, July 13, 2010, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Thomas Catholic Church in Long Beach where friends may visit from 10:00 a.m. until service time. Interment will follow at Live Oak Cemetery in Pass Christian. Bradford-O'Keefe Funeral Home, 15th Street, in Gulfport is in charge of arrangements.