Rita Allen

Rita Allen, 72, Kingsport, TN, passed away on Tuesday, July 12, 2016 at Wellmont Holston Valley Medical Center following a lengthy illness.

Rita Oletha Irons Allen was born in Philadelphia, Mississippi on March 8, 1944 and lived the last 41 years in Kingsport, TN, near her beautiful mountains of Tennessee. She lived for her loving family.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Dick and Audine Irons; grandparents, Calvin and Sadie Irons and Josh and Lucy Matthews; several uncles and aunts, and cousins; nephew, Kent Gregory; sister-in-law, Nancy Allen; and mother-in-law and father-in-law, Flora and Herbert Allen.

Those left to cherish Rita's memory are her loving and wonderful family and her soul-mate of 53 years, her husband, James E. Allen, Jr. of Kingsport; her son, James Allen, Jr. and his wife, Cassie; and daughters, Teresa Slagle and husband, Randy, Renee Pressley and husband, Shawn, and Michelle Gilley and fiancé, Roy Pillow; her 17 grandchildren, the joy of her life, Natasha Brown, and her husband, Josh, Kelsey and Jeremy Slagle, Marcus, Micah, Malachi Dobrovolc and Alisha Pressley, Ian, Macey and Cade Allen, Canyon, Jayden, and Makenna Gilley, and Ryan and Ruben Pillow; step-granddaughter, Dominique Pressley; great-grandchildren, Aubriella, Andrew, and Renee Brown; sisters, Janette McClinton of Union, MS, and Sheila Crenshaw and husband, David of Brandon, MS; brothers, Richard Irons and wife, Judy of Union, MS, and Tim Irons and wife, Kathi of Houston, TX; sisters-in-law, Barbara Yost of Tampa, FL, and Nellie Wilson and husband, Ted of Meadowview, VA; brother-in-law, H.L . Allen Jr. and wife, Janie of Lexington, SC; and several nieces and nephews; and a very special friend, Janice Martin; and special friend, Penny Slaughter.

Honorable mention, Rev. John Love, Rev. Bob Yates, and Dr. Phil Hoskins and deceased Rev. Niles Kitzmiller.

The family will receive friends on Friday from 5-7:00 pm at Hamlett-Dobson Funeral Home, Kingsport. The funeral service will follow at 7:00 pm with Dr. Roy Graves and Dr. Jack Parrott officiating.

A graveside service will be conducted at 1 pm Saturday at East Lawn Memorial Park. Those who plan to attend are asked to meet at the cemetery at 12:45pm.

In lieu of flowers, it would please the family if donations were made to Mr. Allen to help defray expenses, checks payable to Hamlett-Dobson Funeral Home, P.O. Box 27, Kingsport, TN 37662, and note "Rita Allen" on memo.

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