RICHARD ALTON WATSON
June 21, 1951-Aug. 2, 2013
LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Richard Alton Watson, 62, died Aug. 2, 2013, in Los Angeles, Calif., his home of many years.
Richard was born June 21, 1951, to the union of Esther Watson Anderson and Richard Giles Watson, both of whom preceded him in death. Born in Goldsboro, N.C., he was the eldest son of seven children.
Family and friends fondly referred to Richard as "Bokey."
Richard enjoyed his childhood in the "Little Washington" section of Goldsboro, where he often delighted neighborhood children by fixing their bicycles.
He regularly attended the E.A. House Boys' Club, where he discovered a natural talent for singing and playing the piano. He loved music throughout his life, forming his first band at the Boys' Club. After high school, he joined a band in Philadelphia, Pa., where he performed locally.
Richard attended Goldsboro public schools until his last semester at Dillard High School.
After the death of his beloved grandfather, Lewis Smith, Richard moved to Philadelphia, Pa., where he lived with his sister, Queen Watson Harper, and graduated from Olney High School. He always considered himself a Dillard alumnus, however, and participated in Dillard reunions.
A few years after high school, Richard joined the Air Force. While stationed at Kirkland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, N.M., he met and married Shirley Smoot Watson.
Amber Nicole Watson was born to this union. Richard was a devoted "hands-on" father, attending all of Amber's school events and expressing great pride in her accomplishments.
Richard loved his siblings and family, and was in constant contact with them although he lived very far from them. He often called his family just to tell them he loved them.
One of his favorite pastimes was his daily call with his younger brother, James, with whom he discussed all of the news of the day. The two brothers had a very special relationship.
Richard was a funloving kind of guy -- often designated the "life of the party" because of his outgoing personality. He loved to dance, dress sharply, tell good jokes and cook. He inherited his cooking talent from his grandfather, whom he lovingly called "Big Daddy."
Although he worked in property management and health care for many years, Richard always expressed his love of music through playing and singing in groups around Los Angeles, composing and copyrighting original music and playing his guitar daily in the last months of his life.
Richard accepted Christ as his personal savior, and frequently attended Fairview Baptist Church in Inglewood, Calif.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, Aug. 17, 2013, in Inglewood, Calif.
Surviving to cherish his memory are his wife, Shirley Watson of Inglewood, Calif.; daughter, Amber of Inglewood, Calif.; sisters, Lennie Jean Portis (Lewis) of Philadelphia, Pa., Queen Esther Harper (Roosevelt) of Philadelphia, Pa., Catherine W. LeBlanc of Fayetteville, N.C., and Jessina Gray (Jim) of Madison, Ala.; brother, James C. Arrington (Ruby) of Goldsboro, N.C.; mother-in-law, Annie Marie Smoot of Albuquerque, N.M.; sisters-in-law, Georgetta Robinson of Phoenix, Ala., Carol Boles (Hayes) of Jacksonville, Fla., Pamela Clark (Daniel) of Houston, Texas, and Hattie Long of Dallas, Texas; and a number of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends, including special friend, William Irving.
(Pd)
Published in Obituaries on August 16, 2013 1:48 PM