A Celebration of Life for Merline Evans Lyle, 80, formerly of Decatur, will be 11 a.m. Tuesday at Garner Memorial C.M.E. Church with the Rev. Steven D. Little officiating and the Rev. Adolphus Elliott Sr., eulogizing. Inhumation will follow in Sterrs Cemetery. Visitation will be one hour prior to funeral with Reynolds Funeral Home directing.
Merline Evans Lyle was born June 12, 1935 to the late Merlin B. Evans and Odessa Breeding Evans in Decatur, Alabama. A loving mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, aunt and dear friend, to all who knew her. Merline departed this earthly life and met our Heavenly Father on April 24, 2016.
Merline confessed hope, faith and trust in God at an early age. She became a member of Garner Memorial CME Church in Decatur, Alabama. A graduate of Decatur Negro High School, she later earned an Associates Degree in Business from Calhoun Technical & Junior College.
After becoming a single mother, Merline was steadfast in rearing her five children to be deeply rooted in God’s love and mercy; to grow into respectful and productive individuals; and to know the importance of education to achieve their life aspirations. As the years passed, Merline met and married her soul mate, Frank Lyle Jr. on Feb. 12, 1972. She and Frank brought together 11 children to this union. There was only one earthly love strong enough to change the Alabama native into an Ohio girl; that of her “Darling Frank.” Following marriage they relocated to Lima, Ohio. Merline resigned from IBM Corporation after many years of service and became a full-time homemaker. In 1999, they chose Dothan, Alabama as their home to delight in retirement and eternal love.
Merline loved cooking, gardening, fishing, leisure piano playing, crossword puzzles and most of all spending quality time with family. To everyone that met her, she was referred to as “such a sweet lady” and was lovable to everyone whose life she touched.
Merline was preceded in death by her parents; son, Dewayne Lyle and grandson, Derrick Dobbins,
Merline leaves to cherish her memory her devoted husband of 44 years, Frank Lyle Jr.; their children, Mary Alice Dobbins, Baton Rouge, LA, Charles E. (Valerie) Dobbins Jr., Mobile, AL, Gloria Denise (Kenneth Wayne) Johnson, Dallas, TX, Roderick G. Dobbins, Henderson, NV, L. Randall Dobbins, Austin, TX, Carolyn A. (Gay) Jackson, Lima, OH, Mary Jane Turner, Patricia Nelson, Miami, FL, Diania (Robert) Rowe, Barbara (Dorian) Ware, and Keith (Constanta) Lyle, Pontiac, MI; grandchildren, Theodore (Kimberly) Jackson II, Michael D. (Shana) Jackson, Shanna Dobbins, James (Tasha) Lane, Jr., Charla (Terence) Dobbins-Adams, Curtis Bryant (Brittney), Erika (Moses) Semakula, Latoya S. (Jeremy) Henderson, Breeland R. Dobbins, Randall A. Dobbins, Bryce Dobbins, Brodi Dobbins, Latonya Jackson, Melissa Cowell, Christopher Jackson, Dion Jackson, Justin Turner, Julian Truth, Mylea Hall, Ross Rowe and Dennard Ware; 3 sisters, Gwendolyn E. Dobbins, Nashville, TN, Toni E. Shine, Ponoma, CA and Gloria E Smith, Cincinnati, OH; 38 great-grandchildren, a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.
Flowerbearers will be Missionaries and Steward of the church.
Pallbearers will be Theo Jackson, Michael Jackson, Breeland Dobbins, Randall A.Dobbins, James Lane Jr. and Bryce Dobbins.
