Bobby Zane Workman, 83, of Murray Kentucky, went home to be with the Lord on April 3, 2020, after battling Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.
He was born Dec. 16, 1936, in Murray to John and Dixie Jones Workman.
He was preceded in death by his parents and three older sisters, Sue Murdock, Dorothy Dunn and Jo Burkeen.
Bobby is survived by his wife, Doris Irwin of Murray; his children, John Owen Workman and wife Sunny of Birmingham, Alabama, and Laura Lee McConnell and husband James of St. Louis, Missouri; five grandchildren, Wesley Zane Workman, Matthew Norris Workman (deceased), Amanda Jordan Workman Reid, Mitchell Hemphill McConnell and Alexander Owen McConnell; four great-grandchildren, Solomon King, Abraham King, Harper Matthews and Evelyn Rose McConnell; nephews, Rick Murdock, Larry Murdock and Dennis Burkeen; and nieces, Cynthia Murdock Hardjakusumah, Patsy Jo Burkeen Black, Deborah Dunn and Patricia Dunn Tustian.
Bobby was very proud of his hometown of Murray. He was one of the first paper boys for the Murray Ledger & Times back in the late 1940s and later became circulation manager at the age of 16. His sister, Jo Burkeen, worked at the Ledger & Times for more than 60 years. As a child, he was a Cub Scout, belonged to the 4-H Club, and attended the Church of Christ. He liked to play baseball and football and to study maps. In 1955, he graduated from Murray High School. He graduated from Murray State University in 1959 with a degree in chemistry, and became a member of the Epsilon-Lambda Chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. He taught math and chemistry in Indiana where he married Suzanne Owen in 1962, before earning his master’s degree in chemistry from Brown University in 1964.
After graduating, Bobby worked his entire career in the paper business starting at Mead Paper in Sylva, North Caroline, then at Bowater in Rock Hill, South Carolina, and later for Weyerhaeuser in Longview, Washington and Columbus, Mississippi, until retiring in 1998 after 35 years. It was in Columbus that he met his second wife, Jeanette Workman. Bobby and Jeanette had a happy marriage before she died after a long illness in 2013.
In 2014, he returned home to his friends and family in Murray. He became a very active Rotarian and worked part time to deliver the Dollars and $ense for the Murray Ledger & Times. It was at Sunday school at University Church of Christ that he met his wonderful wife, Doris, and they married in 2015.
He will be sorely missed by all his friends and family.
There will be a memorial service planned at a later date.
Online condolences may be left at www.thejhchurchillfuneralhome.com.
The J.H. Churchill Funeral Home & Cremation Services is in charge of arrangements.
