In Memory: George Perry Tyree - Former RHA Commissioner

It is with deep sadness that the Ripley Board of Commissioners and CEO Justin Jones announce that George Perry Tyree, 79, passed away at his home in Ripley, Tenn., on Saturday, March 16, 2024, after an extended illness.

Mr. Tyree graduated from Peabody High School in Trenton, Tenn., in 1962. While attending Peabody, he excelled in multiple sports, being selected to the All-West Tennessee and All-State football teams. He joined the Gibson County Sports Hall of Fame in 2022.

Tyree majored in industrial management at the Georgia Institute of Technology and graduated in 1966. He was a member of Sigma Nu fraternity.

His manufacturing career spanned 34 years, beginning at US Steel in Birmingham, Ala., and retiring from AO Smith in Ripley, Tenn. The majority of his professional path was spent in the Special Products Division of Emerson Electric Company.

Mr. Tyree was active in the Rotary clubs of Brownsville and Ripley, Tenn. He was a commissioner of the Ripley Housing Authority for more than 17 years, being named Tennessee Association of Housing and Redevelopment Authorities' Commissioner of the Year in 2022. A lifelong Methodist, he served on numerous committees, sang in the Chancel Choir, played in the Handbell Choir, coordinated traffic for Bags of Hope, and was a member of the Covenant Sunday school class. His involvement with the West Tennessee Emmaus Community led to participation in his Friday Emmaus Covenant Group. He also enjoyed his involvement with the Thursday prayer group in Brownsville, Tenn.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Robert W. Tyree and Mary Helen Perry Tyree, and his brother, Bob Tyree.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Judy Underwood Tyree; his daughters, Georgianne Tyree, and Mary Grace (Kevin) Reed, both of Dickson, Tenn.; his grandsons, Andrew (Emilie) Reed of Foley, Ala., and John Perry Reed of Lyles, Tenn.; granddaughter, Lainey Reed of Dickson, Tenn.; and one great-granddaughter, Charlie Reed.

Donations in Mr. Tyree's memory may be made to the Ripley First United Methodist Church, 145 S. Main St., Ripley, TN 38063.