Joe Jefferson Shelby, also known as Uncle Joe, Joe and Mr. Joe passed away on April 9, 2022, surrounded by family members.  He was born May 5, 1941 or 5-5-41 as he would always say to the late Thomas Jefferson Shelby and the late Clara Mae Speaks Shelby. He grew into quite the character.  He was also preceded in death by his beautiful wife, Ida Kay Shelby and two brothers, Warren Joy Shelby and Henry Allen Shelby and three sisters, Violet Olean Shelby, Rachel Ovete Shelby, Eathel Alberta Shelby Clayton.  He was also proceeded in death by one great grandchild, Maddox Heath Winford born and then went right to heaven to wait on his Papa.

Let us tell you first about the family legacy he leaves behind.  He leaves behind two children, Joe (Kimberly) Shelby, Jr, Brookland and Missie (Jackie) Winford of Lake City; three grandchildren that include Chris Winford and his children Lilly, Bonelli and Sara Nicole, Cole (Tara) Winford and their children River and Drake of Lake City, Abra Cantrell and her son, Zane.  Step grandchildren include Alysha (Sebastian) Tarkington and their children Natalie and Ella, Tucker (Kendra) McKay and Jenna (Luke Martinez) McKay.  If you lost count, that is a total of eleven grandkids and eight great grandchildren.  He claimed them all and loved them all.  What a legacy!!

He is also survived by six brothers and one sister, Charles Shelby of Texas, Eugene Shelby, Richard (Linda) Shelby, David Shelby, and Jim (Brenda) Shelby all of Shelby Hill and Phillip Ray (Beck) Shelby of Paragould, and Judy (Danny) Stevens of Ash Flat.

He has lots of nieces and nephews too plus friends around the world that he claimed as family!!!

So why the picture of him as a young Sea Bee?  Well, this picture was what Mrs. Ida, Joe and Missie clung to while he was away overseas serving our country.  Every night, they would pull out this picture and read letters he had written, listened to tapes he sent with him talking to them, singing and playing the guitar.  This was the face they saw more often than not.  He was a career Navy man and specialized in the Sea Bee division.  Sea Bees were first to go in everywhere, not the Marine Corp.  Sea Bees cleared the roadways, built roads, airstrips, small temporary cities, and so much more.  He would want you to know that the Sea Bees trumped everyone else.

What did he do in the Navy?  Well, the commendations would fill up a book.  First of all, he did not like to brag about what he had accomplished or been awarded so we will tell you a little.  He declined his Purple Heart Award.  He was injured by a claymore mine but declined the award for personal reasons.  He received Medals galore, he received commendations for joining a Marine battalion for a Special Ops battle that they won, he was a top Marksman, he was an Electrician, a Plumber, a Welder, a HVAC man, a Scuba diver, Heavy Equipment Operator, Diesel and Gas Engine Mechanic and Leader.

He had a platoon of sixty men or more and usually men that were ordered to pick; prison or the military.  He could get through to the hardest of hard men and together, he led them to completing the Air Strip at Diego Garcia off the coast of India six months ahead of schedule.  They dove down in the ocean to get coral and make the concrete.  The Airstrip was named after him because of the leadership he demonstrated.  His men were fiercely loyal to him and he was just as loyal to them.  He saved lives during Vietnam.

He retired from the Navy in 1983 and went to work at Black River Vocational Technical School.   He was the maintenance man.  Retired President Richard Gaines said he did the work of five men, and they literally had to hire five men to replace him when he retired.  Joe Shelby worked hard all the time.

At home, he gardened, made his own wine and stayed up most nights and slept in the daytime after he retired.  He traveled the world more than once and he was a very determined man.  He did things his way, always.

He liked to tinker and always had projects to stay busy.  He loved a good cold beer and for those of you wondering, he loved the Lord, deeply.  Bluegrass gospel music was his most favorite music and then "spa" music.  Instrumental music with woodwind instruments and bagpipes was his second love to listen to while he sat in a sauna.  Did you know he loved a hot sauna?  Go figure, huh?

He was a world traveler, super smart man that really never thought he was as smart as he was because he only finished the 5 ^th grade.  He would want all of you to know that you "Can DO" anything despite whether you got an official diploma or not.  He was licensed to do so much during a time when a high school diploma was not as important and grandfathered in when licensing rules changed.  The Sea Bee moto is "Sea Bees Can Do" and so can you.

If you ever met him and spent five minutes with him, you loved him instantly!!  He would do anything in the world for you if you were a friend or family.  Come join us to celebrate his incredible life and tell us some stories we may not know and we may share some you don't know.

In the end, you should know that he wanted CPR because he lived by the motto, "You live until you die".  After CPR was stopped, his heart started unexpectedly beating again because he was still doing things his way.  He waited for family to arrive and see him off to Glory together as a family and then he left us in a very peaceful manner.  He did things his way, even in the end and he would not want you to cry for him.

We are all so very proud of him and loved him dearly.

Come join us as we lay him to rest on April 14, 2022, at Gregg-Langford Bookout Funeral Home in Jonesboro at 2:00 p.m. with burial at Pinelog Cemetery in Brookland.

Visitation from 1:00 until time of service at the funeral home.

Honored to serve as pallbearers are Joe Shelby, Jr, Richey Shelby, Terry Shelby, Jackie Winford, Cole Winford, Christopher Winford, Tucker McKay and David Robinson.