Mr. Basil Gill Dishongh, Jr.

Mr. Basil Gill Dishongh, Jr., 78, passed away on January 17, 2019, at North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo. Mr. Dishongh was born October 12, 1940, in New Orleans, LA, at the Touro Infirmary, the son of the late Mr. Basil Gill, Sr. (Mr. "D") and Mildred Huddleston Dishongh. His father worked for the Corps of Engineers so they lived in several places in the South throughout his childhood. The family moved to Columbus Mississippi in the 1950’s. He graduated S.D. Lee High School in 1959. Afterwards he attended Marion Military Institute where he was a Captain in Morgan’s Raiders. After graduation he finished his degree at Mississippi State University in 1963, where he was a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity. He was President of Valley Construction Company and built numerous projects for the Corps of Engineers throughout the south. Dishongh was a member of First Baptist Church in Columbus, Mississippi. He was a longtime member of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA). He was the Chief of the Monroe County Flyers and an officer in the EAA Chapter 1189. He learned to fly at a young age and it became a lifelong passion. He was a member of the American Bonanza Society and owned many Beechcraft airplanes. He was a member of the Mississippi Valley Flood Control Branch of the Association of General Contractors where he served two terms on the Board of Directors. Mr. Basil Gill Dishongh, Jr. married Anne Ruble Dishongh on December 16, 1962, in West Point. Funeral services will be Monday, January 21, 2019, at 2:00 P.M. from Calvert Funeral Home Chapel with Dr. Bobby Douglas officiating. Burial will follow in Greenwood Cemetery in West Point. Calvert Funeral Home of West Point is honored to be entrusted with the arrangements. Survivors include His Wife Anne Ruble Dishongh of Houston; Daughter, Julianne Celeste Dishongh of Atlanta, GA; Two Sons, Basil Gill Dishongh, III (Phyllis) of Houston and Emmett Gavin Dishongh (Stephanie) of Birmingham, AL; Four Grandchildren: MaryGrace Dishongh of Houston, Elizabeth Nicole Dishongh of Savannah, GA, Emmett Clark Dishongh of Savannah, GA, and Rivers Gavin Dishongh of Birmingham, AL and One Great Grandson: Lawson Reid Miley of Houston; Brother, Dr. Charles Randall Dishongh of Jackson; Sister-in-Law: Kay Ruble Simmons (Mike) of West Point. Pallbearers will be Emery Skelton, Michael Stone, Greg Andrews, John Prince, Mendy Mendoza, Aubie Pearman, and Dr. Cecil Boswell. Memorials may be made to LeBonheur Children's Hospital, 848 Adams Avenue, Memphis, TN 38103 or to Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 1189, 5068 Airport Road, Aberdeen, MS 39730. Visitation will be Monday 12:00-2:00 P.M. at Calvert Funeral Home. Friends may leave an online condolence at www.calvertfuneralhome.com