Earnest Lee Hubbard, 89, passed away on Thursday, July 14, 2016, at Payson, Arizona, where he had lived since his retirement. He was born March 3, 1927, at Marietta, the fourth of six children, to Lee and Asa Orr Hubbard. They preceded him in death.
He is survived by his wife, Lou; son, David (Suzanne) Hubbard; daughters, Sharon Axtell and Earlene Guzzo; grandchildren, Wanda Hubbard, Jay Lee Axtell, Jennifer Axtell, and Justin Guzzo; four great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.
He married Betty Salter, the mother of his children who preceded him in death. He was married 39 years to Lula Parker, who survives him. Earnest is preceded in death by sisters Opal, Ruby and Lorene and brother James. He is survived by a sister Mary.
Earnest attended Marietta Schools and graduated from Marietta High School in 1945. He came back home to Marietta to attend his 50th high school reunion and had a wonderful time. He then came back in 2009 for the express purpose of attending the "all school reunion: and went with his niece to her 50th class reunion. Again, he had a wonderful time and met many people who well remembered his family.
After graduation, Earnest was drafted into the United States Army and served during World War II, being honorably discharged when the war ended. He had a career as a lineman was employed by Riverton Valley Electric Company for many years. He then moved to Arizona and was employed by the Bureau of Reclamation in Page, Arizona and Arizona Public Service in Phoenix, retiring as head lineman.
After retirement Earnest enjoyed traveling to the northwestern United States and trips to Oklahoma to visit family and friends. He had a love of telling "real-life" stories of his life, work and travel. His memory was so good that if he told a story yesterday or 10 years ago, details were always the same.
One favorite story was: A flood destroyed Hickory Creek bridge on Highway 32, cutting off access for Enville students to get to Marietta to attend school. The solution was to ferry students across the creek in the morning to board the bus and go to school, then reverse the process in the afternoon to get them back home. Earnest's family lived on the west side of Hickory Creek and he was entrusted with driving the bus and helping ferry the students.
Although we know Earnest is in a much better place, his family and friends will miss him greatly.