Welton Cothern

Welton Cothern
July 31, 1934 – Feb. 26, 2025
Welton Dewitt Cothern was born July 31, 1934. He was the son of the late Herman William Cothern and Texie Adell Cothern. Survivors his wife Mearl Boyd Cothern, of 72 years, son Devon, daughters: Melinda, Millie and daughter Renee (predeceased), his sisters Judy Cothern Dickerson and predeceased by sister Joyce Rayborn and brother Joe Cothern; four grandchildren Aaron (predeceased), Adam, Nataly, Katie; 12 great-grandchildren and five great, great grandchildren.
Cothern married Mearl Boyd in 1952 and had a lifelong marriage of 72 years. He taught his grandsons to hunt and fish. He loved the outdoors and the many wonders it had. He was a skillful hunter and fisherman, master carpenter and craftsman. He built houses, custom cabinetry, and furniture, crafted beautiful vases of wood, and made custom jewelry. He wrote many songs and would sing at church with Mearl and Renee and wrote his own love song “Blue Eyes”.
When he graduated high school in 1952, he was the star center on the high school basketball team and Mississippi State University in Hattiesburg took interest in him and awarded a full scholarship to play basketball, but Cothern decided to join the Marine Corp instead. He had to leave the Corp after one year with a hardship discharge due to his father dying.
Cothern formed his own company and went on to build several houses. He found an old house in Tylertown and he renovated the whole house himself. Shortly after, he joined the Carpenters Union Local 1098 in Baton Rouge. He went on to build bridges and many large structures. He rose in the ranks to project superintendent and went on to build 22 Hollow Bridges on Interstate I-55. He also went on to manage the construction of a pickle factory in Wiggins and a chemical plant where he was the superintendent of construction. After the Three Mile Island Nuclear accident he helped manage the melting reactor and the cool down of the containment building. He was named the project engineer over the decontamination and clean-up effort of the nuclear site. He accumulated enough credits through the New York State University to earn his bachelor’s degree in construction management in 1982. His start in the nuclear industry led him to work across the country at 11 nuclear power plants and numerous fossil fueled power plants where he was either the superintendent or project manager.
The funeral service was March 3, 2025, at Riverwood Family in Brookhaven with burial at Enon Cemetery.
Riverwood Family Funeral Service in Brookhaven was in charge of the arrangements.