Good night sweet prince, flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!
Auburn Cleatus Lambeth Jr, Jackson, Mississippi, passed away on Saturday, September 28, 2024, at the State Veterans Home in Oxford, Mississippi, at the age of 94.
He was born June 23, 1930, in Decatur, Georgia, to Frances (Hamilton) Lambeth and Auburn C. Lambeth Sr. His early years in Decatur were spent playing baseball with his three sisters and picking tobacco with his relatives in North Carolina. He was an excellent student and well loved by all his classmates. Auburn excelled in sports especially baseball, basketball, and football. The Atlanta Journal dubbed him the “boy with the golden arm”. Auburn attended Davidson College on a football scholarship where he played quarterback. He chose Davidson over offers from larger universities because of Davidson’s academic excellence. Auburn was admitted into the Davidson College Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994. After graduation, he went on to play professional football as quarterback for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Hamilton,Ontario.
Auburn was a proud Korean War veteran, having received a bronze star for his bravery and valor. He was honorably discharged and returned to marry Nancy Timberlake whom he had met at Queens College in Charlotte, North Carolina. They went on to have a son Charles Anderson and a daughter Linda Louise. Nancy passed in 1980 after a long battle with cancer. On January 7, 1984, he married Rebecca Linda Johnson (Brent).
Auburn was the manager of Lincoln National serving many clients in the Jackson area. He was involved in many civic clubs and activities including the North Jackson Kiwanis club which he served as president. He enjoyed worshiping at Covenant Presbyterian Church, teaching Sunday school, singing in the men’s choir, and was the longest serving active elder, serving 31 years.
He was a true Renaissance man. He loved reciting poetry, singing around the piano, and traveling with friends, especially to the Cotswolds in England. He was known and admired for his kind strength and genteel spirit. Most of all he dearly loved his family, and will forever be known as a wonderful husband, loving father, grandfather and brother and friend to many.
He will be lovingly remembered by his wife, Rebecca Linda Lambeth (Jackson, MS); son, Andy (Jennifer) Lambeth (El Paso, TX); his daughter, Linda (Robert) Fisher (Powder Springs, GA); his two stepchildren Gene (Shelli) Brent (Germantown, TN); Sarah Frances (John) Hardy (Oxford, MS). Also, surviving are nine grandchildren, Mary Catherine Lambeth, Robert (Chelsea) Lambeth, Wilson Lambeth, Christina Brent, Preston Brent, Caroline Brent, Anne Hardy, Sallie Hardy, and Julia Hardy. He was preceded in death by his first wife, and his three sisters Virginia, Margaret, and Lynda.
When asked, Auburn said he wanted to be remembered for “putting other people first, giving them love and affection, and my faith in God.”
Auburn’s life will be celebrated with a funeral service at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, at Covenant Presbyterian Church, 4000 Ridgewood Rd, Jackson, MS 39211 and officiated by Josh Cole. Friends and family may visit an hour prior to the service from 1:30–2:30 p.m. A graveside service will follow at Parkway Memorial Cemetery.
Memorial Donations may be directed to “Canopy Children’s Solutions”, 1465 Lakeland Dr, Jackson, MS 39216, “French Camp Academy” 1 Fine Pl, French Camp, MS 39745, or Covenant Presbyterian Church, 4000 Ridgewood Rd, Jackson, MS 39211.