COLE, Merle, Sr. 1928-2012

COLE, TAYLOR, ANDERSON

Posted By: K.L. Kittleson
Date: 8/22/2012 at 23:21:40

WATERLOO, IOWA - Merle Cole Sr., 84, of Long Beach, Calif., formerly of Waterloo, died Thursday, May, 31, 2012, of natural causes.

He was born June 8, 1928, in Chicago, the son of Joe Cole and Myrtle Anderson. He married Mattie Helen Taylor on September 15, 1949. She died February 11, 2004.

He was a furniture salesman, an apartment manager who helped in the revitalization of many urban apartment housing developments and also a Blues promoter.

He is survived by four sons, Merle J. (Diane) Cole of Long Beach, Tyrone (Judith) Cole of Lancaster, Calif., Michael Hodges of Waterloo and Michael Porter of Tennessee; three daughters, Brenda (James) London and Tina Cole, both of Long Beach, and Debra K. Hodges-Harmon of Waterloo; a sister, Ciggzree Morris of Muskegon, Mich.; a brother, Lottri Smith of Michigan; and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by four brothers, Donald Reid, Virgil and Garrett Harrison and Hortense Brown; three sisters-in-law, Ruth Reid, Geneva Hayden and Mary Jones; and a great-grandchild, Lyric Hodges-Jones.

Memorial services will be held on Wednesday at Payne AME Church, with burial today in Long Beach. Friends are being received at 402 Hope Ave.

[Waterloo Courier - June 5, 2012]