Maurice Clay

Mr. Henry Maurice Clay, 79, passed away on Wednesday, August 4, 2021, at Anderson Regional Medical Center in Meridian, MS. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 A.M. on Saturday, August 7th, at Harmony Baptist Church, with Rev. Jerry Lundy and Rev. Tommy Jones officiating. Visitation will be Friday from 5:00 to 7:00 P.M. at Harmony Baptist Church Family Life Center. Interment will be in Harmony Cemetery. Porter Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. Mr. Clay was born October 21, 1941, in Winston County. He was a 1959 graduate of Nanih Waiya High School, where he played football and scored the first touchdown ever scored for Nanih Waiya. He served in the U. S. Navy during the Vietnam war. He graduated from East Central Community College, and Mississippi State University, where he received his degree in education. He was a retired high school teacher, having taught at Durant, Weir, and Nanih Waiya, and coached football and girls’ basketball. He loved hunting and fishing, and was the gospel music DJ at WLSM for many years. He was a faithful member of Harmony Baptist Church. He was preceded in death by his parents, Shirley and Joe Clay. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Charlotte Kemp Clay; a daughter, Susan Jackson of Starkville; a son, Joe (Amy) Clay of Lake, MS; seven grandchildren, A. J. (Chasity) Clay, Hannah (Perry) Stroud, Rachel Clay, Olivia Clay, Corey (Kayla) Jackson, Cara (Todd) Hughes, and Clay Jackson; and four great grandchildren, Tucker Clay, Bonnie Clay, Maryanne Stroud, and Owen Jackson. Pallbearers will be A. J. Clay, Perry Stroud, Corey Jackson, Clay Jackson, Todd Hughes, and Jeffrey Yarbrough. Memorials may be made to the Gideons or St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.