October 10, 2022, 79, Goldsboro –

Carl Shelton Thornton, Sr., age 79, passed away Monday evening at Wayne/UNC Health Care.  Born in Wayne County, NC, he was the son of the late Harvey Preston Thornton, Sr., and Bessie Nora Jordan Thornton.  A Vietnam Veteran of the United States Air Force, he retired from Mills Logging Company and was a member of Spirit of Life Church of God in Clinton, NC.   He and his wife, Irene, helped organize and worked with the Grantham Rescue for 28 years. He was also a member of the Mt. Olive Pickle Kickers.

Funeral Services will be held Sunday, October 16, 2022, at 4:00 p.m. at Spirit of Life Church of God with Bishop Darian Parker officiating. The family will have a time of visitation at the church from 3:00 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. on Sunday. A graveside service, with military honors, will be held on Monday, October 17, 2022, at 2:00 p.m. at the Eastern Carolina State Veterans Cemetery in Goldsboro, NC.

Mr. Thornton is survived by his wife of 54 years, Irene Rudd Thornton; his son, Carl Shelton Thornton, Jr.; his daughters, Melissa Henry Shaw, Rhonda Parker (Darian), and Heather Taylor (Troy); his brothers, Rayvon Thornton, Preston Thornton (Carolyn) and Harold Thornton (Kathy); his sister, Frances Capps (James); his brother-in-law, Kenneth Coker; his sister-in-law, Jenny Thornton;  his grandchildren, Ashley Shaw, Matthew Shaw (Corrie), Allyson Parker, Hunter Taylor (Morgan), Samantha Cannady (Ethan), Hannah Taylor, Nathan Parker, Hope Parker, Olivia Taylor, and Maddox Taylor; his great-grandchildren, Stella Josephine Cannady, and Blair Addison Shaw.

Along with his parents, he was preceded in death by sisters, Violet Thornton, and Judy Coker and brothers, Gordon Thornton and Gary Thornton.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be directed to Spirit of Life Christian Academy, 180 Overland Road, Clinton, NC 28328.

Shumate-Faulk Funeral Home is serving the Thornton family and online condolences may be directed to www.shumate-faulk.com.