Earl Burton, age 81, of Toledo, had his final sunset at Pristine Care Living Center in Toledo on Saturday, December 9, 2017. His first sunrise was on July 31, 1936 in Little Rock, Arkansas. He was born to Jason E. and Willmer R. (McMullan) Burton.

As a young boy, he worked in the cotton fields in Little Rock where he helped his sister, Mattie, pick and chop cotton. Chopping cotton was hard work, it was done by hand, working from one row to another, thinning the plants and propping-up the delicate ones with dirt. Later in adulthood, he helped Mattie rear her children, her children often times looked up to their Uncle Earl as a father figure.

Before entering into the U.S. Navy, Earl was a barber in Little Rock, Arkansas. He proudly served in the U.S. Navy from 1955 - 1957, serving on the USS Princeton where he was known to cut his fellow shipmates hair. He held the male grooming standards in high regards while serving in the Navy. After his time spent in the U.S. Navy, he moved from Little Rock, Arkansas to Detroit, Michigan in the 1950's where he joined other family members who had moved to the area to work in the auto industry. While in Detroit, he worked at S.O.S. Service Station which was owned by his brother, Edward Burton. He also worked as various factories and bakeries in Detroit and in East Toledo, including Wonderbread. He loved baking and he was good at it!

When he wasn't working he enjoyed vegetable gardening and baking. Earl's family will remember him as a loving brother and uncle who was generous with his time and hardworking. He was smart and articulate and never asked for a hand-out.

Left to cherish his memory are his sisters, Ida Reid and Wilma Jean Jackson; daughter, Wanda Faye Burton; many nieces and nephews; many great-nieces and great-nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; siblings, Mattie McNeal, Ernest Franklin, Luther Burton, Hazel Burton, Edward Burton, Wallace Burton and Willie C. Burton.

The family will receive guests on Friday, Dec. 15, 2017 from 11:00 a.m. until the time of the service. His Funeral Service will begin in the funeral home on Friday at 12:00 p.m. with Sr. Mary Chandler officiating. Interment will follow in Forest Cemetery, Toledo, Ohio.

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