Iva Dell Blackburn

Iva Dell Blackburn, of Abilene, passed away Saturday, June 2, 2007 at the age of 92. Funeral services, with Les McGalliard officiating, will be at 2:00 pm on Tuesday, June 5 at The Hamil Family Funeral Home, 6449 Buffalo Gap Road. Burial will follow in the Potosi Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 6:00 to 8:00 pm on Monday in the funeral home chapel. February 23, 1915, Iva Dell was born the daughter of Franklin Whitt and Althea Leota (Parrish) Whitt in Cherokee, Texas. She graduated from high school in Elmdale. In 1933, Iva Dell married Cecil H. Blackburn in Abilene, Texas. The couple has been married for 74 years. She was a member of Oldham Lane Church of Christ. Iva Dell was preceded in death by her parents, one brother and three sisters. She is survived by her husband, Cecil H. Blackburn of Abilene; one son, Gerald M. Blackburn and his wife Celeste of Denton, Texas; two daughters, Patsy Townsend also of Denton, and Judy Williford and her husband Wade of Asheville, North Carolina; five grandchildren, Gerald Townsend and his wife Joni, Richard Townsend, Terri Johnson, Lisa Gemeinhardt and her husband Chad, and Sarah Williford; three great-grandchildren, Christina Townsend, Joshua Townsend, and Alex Townsend.