| Sources |
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 2 May 2007.
Mattie Josephine Alley obituary
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 20 Dec 2012.
Retirees from American Enka gathered Tuesday morning, December 18, at Shoney’s in Newport for their annual Christmas breakfast. Howard Heifner provided music and door prizes and gifts were given. Front row, from left, are Christine Smith, Howard Heifner, Genevieve Dalton, Betty Russell, William Jimmy Flynn, Tillman French, Dugan Calfee, Paul Ollis, Olin Hall, and Gene Deering. Standing from left are Jeremy Wicker, Cleo Whaley, Ralph Hodge, M. E. Edwards, W. C. Vinson, Jack Suggs, Ronald Parks, Herbert Wiley, Arthur Shelton, Alvin Watts, Harold Blazer, David ‘Cobb’ Proffitt, Charlie ‘Cas’ Walker, Ronnie Wardroup, Dickie Butler, Thomas Shaver, and Jerry Luttrell.
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 20 Feb 2014.
‘Retirement doesn’t mean you have to lay down!’
BY DUAY O’NEIL NPT Assistant Editor
David ‘Cobb’ Proffitt checks the inventory at Bread Basket where he volunteers on a weekly basis.
NEWPORT—Cobb Proffitt has retired more than once but remains as active as ever.
The Cosby native retired at age 50 from Enka with 30 years of service and spent the next nine months becoming more and more miserable with his inactivity.
“I’d rather be working,” said Proffitt, so one morning he told his wife, “I’m leaving and the next time you see me I’ll have a job!”
Before lunch, Proffitt had become the newest employee of the local Wal-Mart, where he worked about three years in the sporting goods department. Then he went to work for Newport Hardware where he remained for 15 years before retiring again in July of 2012.
But just because he’s retired again doesn’t mean Proffitt stays at home, leisurely passing the days in a hammock.
Every second and fourth Wednesday and every Friday he reports for duty at Bread Basket, one of Cocke County’s food pantries, located in Murray Drive behind Newport Internal Medicine and Cocke County Convalescent Center.
Here he spends his time making up boxes of food and other items for the growing number of recipients in need of help.
“It’s really amazing how the number of families we serve has grown in the last year of so,” he observed. “We’re always in need of donated canned goods, nonperishable food items, and other necessities, such as toilet paper. And, of course, monetary gifts are always welcome.”
Proffitt, a Cosby High School graduate of 1960, also looks forward to the yearly gathering of the “Old Timers Club,” retirees who once spent time serving their country in the National Guard.
He did six years service and can always been found when the group gathers at the National Guard Armory for their reunion.
More time is spent helping with various projects at First United Methodist Church, where he and his wife of 45 years, the former Pauline Alley, can be found most Sundays at the early service and then in their respective Sunday school classes.
For several years he and Pauline helped deliver Christmas meals as part of Northport Baptist Church’s annual project, and this year, Pauline oversaw the provision of hundreds of homebaked desserts for the project. Of course, Cobb, whose given names are William David, was on hand to help transport the food from FUMC to Northport.
They are also indefatigable workers in the church’s annual Holiday Bazaar, held each November, to raise money for local mission projects, one of which is a generous donation to Bread Basket.
When bazaar time rolls around, so does Cobb, who’s always willing to set up a table or two, carry in donations, and, in general, help in any way he can. He’s handy in the kitchen, too, helping Pauline whip up mouthwatering cakes and pies to share with others and take his turn stirring the pot when making such delicacies as cranberry jam to sell at the bazaar.
He and Pauline also attend Bible study sessions and enjoy the church’s Seniors
in Action get-togethers.
He doesn’t really believe in “days off.” When not involved in a project to help their community, the Proffitts enjoy day trips to area cities and towns, where they seek out new dining experiences, browse the antiques and junk shops, and, in general, enjoy life to the fullest extent.
Recently the two have enjoyed karaoke nights at East Tennessee Coffee Company, where Cobb is quick to say, “I don’t sing, but I like to listen!”
And when great-granddaughter, four-year-old Alley Proffitt comes to visit, well, that’s just about puts the icing on the cake for “Papaw.”
- [S58] Marriage Certificate.
name: Pauline Alley
also known as:
suffix:
event: Marriage
event date: 18 Jun 1968
event place: Cocke, Tennessee, United States
gender: Female
spouse: David Proffitt
spouse's also known as:
spouse's prefix:
spouse's suffix:
page: 128
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