Willis (Lavern) Folks, was born on December 29, 1946, in Laurel, to Willis Lavee and Clotteal Dennis Folks. He retired after 36 years as a Longshoreman at the Gulfport Harbor, where he was known as Nubby. He worked for the Jackson County Road Department and also for the Grand Casino of Biloxi. As a boy, he worked as a shoe boy in New Orleans. Willis was a loving and dedicated husband, father, grandfather, son, and brother. Willis loved hunting and fishing, NASCAR, classic cars, gardening, and one of his favorite ways to pass time was sitting on his porch enjoying nature with his animals.

Willis was preceded in death by his father and his mother, his loving wife, Cecelia Elizabeth Folks and their baby girl.

Willis is survived by his boys, Willis Lavern Folks, Jr., Michael Lavee Folks and his wife Staci, and Jeremy Logan Folks and his wife Jillian. He was a loving Grandpa to Kara Elizabeth Folks, Kylie Nicole Folks, and Donald Logan Folks. Willis was a loving brother to his sister, Mary Folks and her husband Jacob Barraco; his brother, Haskell Folks, and his other sisters, Goldie Hayes, and Julie Hayes and her husband Scott Tomb. He is also survived by his uncle, Jack Folks; his aunts, Voncile Folks, Retha Dubuisson, Ruth Buras, and Eleanor Richardson and a great number of nieces and nephews. He was a loving owner to his dog Bebe and his big ball of fur, Tia and his 2 grandpuppies, Luke and Little Bit.

His boys would like to express their gratitude to the hospice staff, to their aunt Mary and their friends, Mike and Linda Seymour, Chris Aubrey, and Ethan Saucier. They would like to say a special thanks, with love, to their aunt Goldie, for her love and dedication to their daddy and her beloved brother.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to be made to the American Cancer Society, 417 Security Square, Gulfport, MS 39507, in their father's memory.

Funeral services will be held on Monday, July 3, 2017, at 11am at Southern Mississippi Funeral Services, 6631 Washington Avenue in Ocean Springs. The family will receive friends from 9 -11 am prior to the service. Burial will follow at Crestlawn Memorial Park in Ocean Springs.

For more information, please call (228) 872-3637.

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