Obituary of James M. Woods

James M. Woods, 88, of Bedford, passed away at 5:50 a.m. on Tuesday, June 15, 2021, at Bliss Place in Bedford. Born April 1, 1933, in Russellville, AK, he was the son of E. A. and Cora (Hicks) Woods. He married Reba Mae Smith and she survives. He retired as an Experimental Flight Administrator for Beechcraft/Raytheon in Wichita, KS after 40 years of service. His division built airplanes for the Air Force, Army, Navy and designed and certified the innovative Starship. A gifted musician, he sang and played piano in quartets (Arkansas Valley Five and Ambassadors) and was Music/Choir Director for over 30 years at Evangel A/G in Wichita. He later assisted his daughter, Melody, with the choir at Bedford A/G. He often said, “Beechcraft is my job. Music is my life.” Survivors include his wife, Reba Mae, of Bedford; a daughter, Melody Turner and husband, Dr. Dennis Turner, of Bedford; a grandchild, Austin Malone, of Bedford; two great grandchildren, Elle and Finn Malone. He was preceded in death by his parents, a brother, Lloyd (Pinky) Woods; two sisters, Bobbie Wright and Billie Wilson. Jim was the family “MacGyver.” He fixed...well...anything. He loved gardening, landscaping and built a spring-fed pond, stocked it with fish, and developed a family park called, Beechwood. Jim loved his family with word and deed, his Lord with conviction, and had a special bond with Melody/Denny’s Bichon, Maggie. Funeral services will be conducted at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 19th in the Elmwood Chapel of the Day and Carter Mortuary with Pastor David Wigington and Pastor Gary Thomas officiating. Burial will follow in Hilltop Cemetery. Visitation will be from 11:00 a.m. until the hour of service on Saturday, June 19th at the Day and Carter Mortuary. Family and friends may express condolences at www.daycarter.com. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Alzheimers’ Association at https://www.alz.org/ or the Children and Youth Ministries at Cornerstone Christian Fellowship in Bloomington