The Transylvania Times -

Richard Merritt Britt, 82, currently of Clarkesville, Ga., passed away peacefully at Mountain View Health and Rehabilitation Center in Clayton, Ga., Aug. 19, 2019, from complications of long-term dementia.

Born Oct. 4, 1936, in Jacksonville, Fla., he spent most of his early years in Winter Park, Fla., the perfect setting for this person of enormous personal charm, good humor and sports, and creative talent. Some of his fondest memories were times spent with his father at his father’s hunting camp, and with the whole family at the “camp” on Lake Butler in Winter Garden.

An avid swimmer, water-skier and fisherman, he was also a fantastic partner on the ballroom dance floor, played trumpet and piano, and was highly popular among his large community of friends. He also treasured Summertime visits with his beloved grandmother at her pre-Civil War home place in southern Alabama.

He attended prep school at Christ School in Arden, N.C., Winter Park High School and the University of Florida before joining the military. He served four years in the Navy, followed by three years in the United State Air Force. Afterwards, he spent his working career with two large corporations, General Motors, in Quality Control, and Atlantic Steel, in management.

Following retirement in 1996, he and his wife, Betty, moved to their vacation home in Western North Carolina, where he remodeled the cabin into a beautiful home. He also took a part-time job for the next 17 years at a popular convenience store in Rosman. They moved to Clarkesville in April 2018, to be nearer family as Richard’s health condition declined.

He is survived by his wife, Betty; stepson, Vincent Ray (wife, Sonya), of Charlotte, N.C .; stepdaughter, Beverly Randall, of Stone Mountain; three sons, Stephen, Christopher and Eric Britt and their mother, Patti Britt, of northeast Pennsylvania; one sister, Jeanie Britt Daves (husband, Walter), of Clarkesville, Ga .; 13 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Emma Brunson Britt and Henry Merritt Britt, of Winter Park; his sister, Brenda Britt Stabell (husband, Richard), of Houston, Texas; and his son-in-law, Bob Randall of Atlanta, Ga.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Happy Tailz Pet Rescue, Inc., P.O. Box 801, Sautee-Nacoochee, GA 30571.

Hillside Memorial Chapel and Gardens of Clarkesville, Ga., is handling funeral arrangements.

The funeral service will be held Thursday, Aug. 22, 2019, at 2 p.m.