BJ Circulation retiree Raife Woodall dies

Raife ``Woody' Woodall, 69, passed away September 12, 2010.

He was born in Akron, Ohio and graduated from South High School. He served in the U.S. Army and was a member of Wesley Temple AME Zion Church. Raife was a Golden Glove boxer and a member of the Summit County Hall of Fame Boxing Association and was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame in September, 2009. He was a Golden Heritage Member of the NAACP and a member of the Cleveland Chapter of the Westfield Alumni Association. He worked for Firestone Tire & Rubber Company and the Akron Beacon Journal from which he retired. He was an avid runner and he enjoyed doing things to help others.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Raife and Bertha Woodall; brother, Andrew Woodall; foster father, Samuel Culver; and foster brother, Aaron Culver.

Raife leaves to cherish the legacy of his life, his wife, Ethel; his son and daughter-in-law, Robert and Lora Woodall of St. Petersburg, Fla.; grandchildren, Odessa Woodall Biandudi and her husband, Jeremy of Landover Hills, Md., Mallory Woodall Williams and her husband, Tyrone of St. Petersburg, Fla., Megan Woodall Hires and her husband, Justin of Burbank, Calif., Robert DR Woodall of Baldwin City, Kan.; great-granddaughter, Alyssa Williams of St. Petersburg, Fla.: foster mother, Mary Culver; foster brothers, Alvin Culver and his wife, Gwen and Bobby Culver, all of Akron, Ohio; and a host of relatives and friends.

Services will be held Saturday, September 18, 2010 at 12 Noon at Wesley Temple AME Zion Church, 104 N. Prospect Street, Akron, OH 44304, Rev. Vince L. Munden officiating. Interment at Mount Peace Cemetery. Family will receive friends at the church from 10 a.m. until the time of service. Procession will form and condolences may be sent to 418 Barwell St., Akron, OH 44303. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to Hospice & Palliative Care of Visiting Nurse Service, 3358 Ridgewood Road, Akron Ohio 44333.
(330) 535-1543

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Woody retired from the BJ Circulation Department as a truck driver. The Woodalls live in Akron.

Woody's cousin, Elmer Johnson, passed away several weeks ago. Another cousin, Alabama native Lucy Felton Lee, died in Akron Dec. 29, 1998.

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