Darrell M. Bailey's Obituary
Friday, November 3, 2017 at 1:08 am, the world lost a wonderful man and we lost our precious Dad, the wisest man we will ever know to complications of HLH/Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis. He was kind, loving, caring and the center for many people. Our Dad was the backbone for our family and had the best moral compass of anyone we knew. He always provided for his family and made sure we had everything we needed.
Friends would often call asking if we could ask our dad what he would do in their situation because he inevitably had the right answer. A former student of his once wrote that, “as painful as it was when Coach Bailey got ahold of you, you knew you deserved it.” He taught us that fair and consistent even though not always popular, would earn you respect. He always instilled in everyone that education was so very important, and he would unfailingly support you when you chose to follow that path. We so hope that he knew how very much he was loved and respected by so many.
Our one hope is that we made him proud and that he could see that his sweat and often tears did make a difference in many people's lives… not just ours.
Our lives will forever be changed but we know without a shadow of a doubt that as soon as we watched him take his last breath, he was with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, completely healed…not suffering, not tired, not anxious and most of all rejoicing on the streets of gold! We will never be the same. Craig and Kara
Darrell M. Bailey was born on June 9, 1944, in Wauchula, Florida, to Acy Clarence and Myrle Bailey. In November of 1963, he married his high school sweetheart, Linda Smith. They celebrated 53 wedding anniversaries together. Craig was born in 1969 and Kara in 1972.
He was a 1966 graduate of his beloved Berry College in Rome, GA, and earned his Masters and Education Specialist degrees from Rollins College in Winter Park, FL. Darrell worked in the Polk and Highlands County school systems for more than 37 years as a teacher, coach and administrator. He was a member of Kathleen Baptist Church. After retirement, he enjoyed traveling the country in his motorhome with his wife and close friends, spending time at his cabin in Tennessee and watching any UF Gator teams that were in action.
Darrell was preceded in death by his Father and Mother. He is survived by his wife, Linda Smith Bailey of Lakeland, FL, his son, Craig Bailey (Rhonda) of Gainesville, GA, his daughter Kara Bailey-Anguizola (Jelinek) of Lakeland, FL and his brother, James W. Bailey of Lakeland, FL. His grandchildren are Carter Bailey, Nolan Anguizola, Nathan Anguizola, Julissa Anguizola and Jhonatan Anguizola.
In lieu of flowers, Darrell requested that donations be made to either the Kathleen Baptist Church Lottie Moon Christmas Offering (3939 2nd St NW, Lakeland, FL 33810) or St. Jude Childrens Hospital (https://www.stjude.org/give.html).
Visitation will be held on Tuesday, November 7th from 5:00-6:00 pm at Kathleen Baptist Church (3939 2nd St NW, Lakeland, FL 33810) to be immediately followed by a celebration of life service.
Graveside service will be held on Wednesday, November 8th at 10 am at Serenity Gardens (3350 Mall Hill Dr, Lakeland, FL 33810).
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