Major (Ret.) Audis Walker "Buddy" Garner — Obituary
Major (Retired) Audis Walker "Buddy" Garner, June 24, 1937-September 6, 2016. Valley, AL- Major (Retired) Audis Walker "Buddy" Garner, 79, of Valley, Alabama, passed away, Tuesday, September 6, 2016 at St. Francis Hospital in Columbus, Georgia. After a long, hard fought battle with an abdominal infection, and two major surgeries, he surrendered his spirit, while resting comfortably and surrounded by his family.
His funeral was held in his hometown of Centerville, TN at the McDonald Funeral Home. Burial, with full military honors, followed at Memorial Gardens in Centerville. Active duty servicemen from the famed 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky provided the burial detail, firing squad and bugler.
Buddy was born June 24, 1937 in Centerville, Tennessee to C. W. "Nig" Garner and Zelma Garner. He graduated from Centerville High School in 1953 and from the University of Tampa in 1973. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1961 and was selected for officer training, where he graduated from Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, Georgia, in 1961 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Infantry. On February 10, 1962 he married the former Oma Alice Travis in Columbus, Georgia. After a distinguished 20 year career, Buddy retired from the Army in 1981, from Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He served two tours of duty in Vietnam in 1966 and 1968. His awards and decorations included the Silver Star for heroism, the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star with Valor Device and 3 Oak Leaf Clusters, the Army Commendation Medal with Valor Device and 2 Oak Leaf Clusters, the Vietnam Cross of Gallantry, the Combat Infantryman Badge, Ranger Tab, Special Forces Tab, Master Parachutist Badge, and German Airborne Wings.
After his retirement from the Army in 1981, Buddy went on to teach Junior ROTC at three different high schools in Tennessee, until his final assignment and retirement from his alma mater Hickman County High School in 1997. After his retirement in 1997, Buddy and Alice moved to Lake Harding, Alabama where he enjoyed boating, fishing, arguing with FoxNews, and spending time with friends at various breakfast clubs telling jokes and solving the world's problems. In a final act of recognition for his battlefield heroism during the Vietnam War, Buddy was formally inducted into the Officer Candidate School Hall of Fame in 2014 at the National Infantry Museum in Columbus, Georgia.
Buddy is survived by his wife, Alice, of 54 years; his son Michael David Garner and his wife Amy of Hickory, North Carolina; his daughter Kimberly Ann Myers and her husband Kelly of Collierville, Tennessee; his three grandsons, Christopher Michael Garner, Matthew Travis Garner, and Kelly Delson Myers III; his granddaughter Mary Elizabeth Myers; his sister Mattie Pearl Garner (Mayberry) and her husband Ben Mayberry of Centerville, Tennessee; brother-in-law Bobby Copley of Centerville, Tennessee; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, C.W. "Nig" and Zelma, and his sister Patsy Ann Garner (Copley).
