Doris “Mom, Mutti, Oma, Pug” Wilkerson, age 90, departed this life on Saturday, March 9, 2024 after a sudden illness.
Doris was preceded in death by her parents, Blake and Naomi Sneed of Cherokee, N.C.; sisters, Geneva Jackson and Rita Ann Divilbiss; brother, Sam (Tom) Sneed; and a son, James L Wilkerson.
She leaves behind her son, Charles L Wilkerson; a daughter-in-law, Kathy Wilkerson; a son-in-law, James Long; a grandson, Nicholas Wilkerson; and a granddaughter, Alexandra Wilkerson. She is also survived by her sisters, Emma Sneed, Sue McManus, Daphne Hambrook (Steve), Judy Cook (Mike); and brother, Keith Sneed (Sandra) as well as many nieces, nephews and cousins.
Doris was born on the reservation in Cherokee, N.C. and left at the age of 17 to enlist in the U.S. Air Force. After completing her basic training in San Antonio, Texas. She was transferred to Sacramento, Calif. It was there she met her future husband, Clarence L Wilkerson (also in the Air Force). While stationed in Sacramento (March AFB), she was assigned to the Air Force Band of the West as a trombone/baritone player.
After marrying, she separated from the Air Force. Doris and Clarence were then transferred to Mt. Home, Idaho. While there they welcomed their first child (Charles). Later they were stationed in Furstenfeldbruck, Germany, where they had their second child (James). Future assignments took them to Spokane, Wash.; Everett, Wash.; Frankfurt, Germany; and San Antonio, Texas where they made their home for many years. In San Antonio, Doris had an extensive career including work as a Department of Defense civilian employee in the Contracting Division at Kelly AFB and retired as a GS-11.
She leaves behind a loving legacy of friends and family from her formative years on the reservation, friends acquired during her husband’s assignments, and her long Civil Service tenure at Kelly AFB.
Those who knew and loved Doris are invited to a celebration of her life at Hillcrest Funeral Home on Saturday, March 30 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Services will begin at noon.
You may also honor Doris by making donations to VFW Post 8013, Banjo Lane, Cherokee, NC 29719 or the Senior Center on Cherokee Indian Reservation.