Eugene Roe, Sr.

Born in Emmet, TN on July 23, 1931 Departed on July 14, 2017 and resided in Hendersonville, TN Life Celebration Service: Hendersonville Funeral Home Room: ChapelTuesday July 18, 2017 10:00am to 11:00amVisitation: Hendersonville Funeral Home Room: Stateroom ATuesday July 18, 2017 9:30am to 10:00amVisitation: Hendersonville Funeral Home Room: Stateroom AMonday July 17, 2017 5:00pm to 8:00pm

Eugene Layfette Roe was born July 23, 1931, in Emmet, TN.

As soon as Eugene was able, he started working in order to help support his family. He did everything from cutting tobacco to delivering groceries on foot. He played football and basketball in High School. And was voted "Quietest" in his class.

He was offered a scholarship to Berea College in Eastern Kentucky, but was unable to attend because his family could not afford the bus fare. This lead to him trying to enlist in the Navy, but he was rejected because he was two (2) pounds underweight. One day after joining the Air Force, the Navy contacted him and said they would accept him. In the Air Force, he was a gunner, but spent most of his time as an instructor on B29s. When the Air Force finally let him join a crew he did his crew training in San Antonio. He was later transferred to Savannah, GA, where he was assigned to another crew and flew on B50s. He was also stationed in England for a time. One of the flight crews he was assigned to was one of several selected and trained to drop an A-bomb during the Korean War. He was honorably discharged.
Due to his service in the Air Force, Eugene was able to attend the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. While in college, the Air Force made him go to Alabama to confirm he did not have TB. Due to a shortage of beds at the Hospital, he and 3-4 other men were put in the maternity ward.

One college spring break, instead of hiking up Holsten Mountain as he normally did, he visited his father's diner. During that visit, he met Alice Faye Galligher, his "wild mountain flower", the woman he would fall in love with and be married to for nearly 54 years. Together they raised 2 sons (Eugene and Ronald) and 2 daughters (Robin and Teresa).

After graduating UT, with a degree in Electrical Engineering, he went to work for the US Army Corp of Engineers in 1956. This was the Nashville district which operated dams along much of the Cumberland River. He started in electrical design, then moved to electrical testing. He worked out of Center Hill, near Cookeville or Old Hickory in Hendersonville. He moved between Hendersonville and Cookeville twice. His final move was in 1975 back to Hendersonville when he became Chief of the Hydroelectric Power Operations at the Nashville District Office. He remained in that role until his retirement in 1990.

His friend and co-worker James Lannom discussed Gene in a retirement article. "Gene has always been the kind of man who tried to avoid the headlines," Lannom revealed, "preferring to operate in the background. He never had much to say, but when he did people recognized that he knew what he was talking about. He's a pretty impressive man."

"He was also a good supervisor, never high pressure. People enjoyed working for him because they knew he'd treat them right."
But as quiet as he was, Gene had another side, too, Lannom explained, one that could get down to business quickly.

"In our last union negotiations, Gene was the Chief Negotiator. He negotiated a contract in shorter time than we have ever had before. He cut right through to the heart of the matter. There was four days of negotiating; I'd say that was a record. But you see, the Union International respected him, and they know his word was good. You could count on it."
The article named him "the quiet one."

When he retired in 1990, he tried golf and travel with his wife Alice. This was short lived as he was born to work. Bored with retirement, he worked several years for Avis moving cars around at the Nashville airport and to other locations. He then went to work for United Power Service and Southwest Electric and traveled all over the country until he retired to care for his wife.

His life was all about his love for God and his family. He always attended church regularly. He was very active in teaching Sunday school class, acted as a deacon, and was a great financial steward of God's resources.

He did very little for himself. He spent his free time with family or in church related activities. He took the family on many great vacations. He was always present at the kid's events. He helped all the kids get through college debt free. He did enjoy watching sports, but mostly with the family. Atlanta Braves baseball was his favorite. He took the family to see many games.

His favorite place to visit was DisneyWorld. He took the family there several times and continued to take his wife almost every year until his wife's death. He still would go back with Teresa even after Alice passed. He said, "I guess I'm just a kid at heart."
He was always smiling and had an infectious laugh.