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Edward Dene Pattillo

Posted 2022-05-03 by mhenderson
Published by The Miner on April 21, 2022 -
Kingman, Arizona -

Edward Dene Pattillo, “Eddie Dene” to his friends, passed away
peacefully at home on Friday April 15, 2022. His services will be at the
Elks’ Lodge at 900 Gates Ave. on April 27 at 11 a.m. A graveside service
will follow with a reception at the Elks Lodge. There will be a
visitation on April 26 from 5-7 p.m. at Sutton Funeral Home.

Eddie was a 27-year cancer survivor. He was a downwinder who fought over
50 years to get justice for the victims of Lower Mohave County from the
U.S. government’s careless actions in the 1950s which exposed the entire
area to radiation for over a decade.

Eddie was a third-generation Kingman native who was born in the Mohave
County Hospital on Feb. 8, 1939 to Henry Dene Pattillo and Lillian M.
Pattillo. He graduated from Mohave County Union High School in 1957
where he lettered in football. His family now has three generations of
Kingman natives with the addition of his great nephew Riley Ferry-Finn.
Eddie was a beloved father, husband, brother and son.

He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Mary Jane Hobbs-Pattillo, and
his three children, Kim, Cullin and Sally Pattillo (his favorite mini
schnauzer). He is also survived by his nephew Sean Davis and great
nephew Finn Davis of Tucson. Eddie was preceded in death by his parents
Henry Dene Pattillo and Lillian Maloney-Pattillo, and sister Sharon
Pattillo-Davis, who was also a downwinder.

Dad was a lifetime member of the Elks Lodge #468 for 63 years and a
brother of the Masonic Temple #22 for 56 years. He was Exalted Ruler of
the Elks Lodge in 1973. Dad was a member of the Delta Chi Fraternity at
the University of Arizona. He graduated from the University of Phoenix
with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He was a member of
the Mohave County Hospital District Board and Municipal Utilities
Commission for the City of Kingman. Dad was instrumental in forming the
Mohave County Economic Development Authority and was a founding member
of that board as well.

Dad had many careers and areas of expertise. He was a lifeguard on Lake
Mohave and at the swimming pool in downtown Kingman. He worked for John
Jordan Engineering where he helped survey most of Mohave County. He went
to work as a cartographer for Mohave County. Then he was an insurance
agent for Valley National Insurance for 23 years. Dad finally moved on
to the field of construction management for Specialty Contractors and
Thunderbolt Construction until his retirement.

Dad had mad skills. He could do just about anything he put his mind to.
When he retired, he started his outdoor wellness program fixing and
landscaping his daughter Kim’s house and his own residence in downtown
Kingman. He could do plumbing, electrical work, masonry, surveying,
roofing – you name it and he could do it. These things kept him busy and
helped him stay young.

Dad was well known for his quick smile, gourmet cooking skills and
wicked sense of humor. His favorite joke came from a friend of his
mother, Ollie Bond, who saw him moving into his last residence on
Grandview a block away from his childhood home. She stopped and spoke to
him as he was moving in and said: “Boy, you sure didn’t go very far in
life.” His response was, “I went as far as I could without crossing the
street.”

Dad was a truly great human being who made the world a better place.
He is dearly missed by his family, friends and brothers in the Elks
Lodge and Masonic Temple.





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