RICHARD B. KEPLEY, SR Veteran
SALISBURY – It is with extreme sorrow we share the passing of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, and friend, Richard Kepley, who passed away April 19, 2021 at the VA Hospice.
Richard was born August 20, 1934, in Davidson County, NC to Louise Hill Kepley and William McCoy Kepley. He served with the US Army’s 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment and later as an instructor at the Airborne School, Fort Benning, GA. Following his service, he began his career as a salesman—going door to door for the Fuller Brush Co, then working as District Sales Manager for Sears, Roebuck, and Co., and eventually became Montgomery Ward’s Regional Sales Manager for New York and New England.
In 1963, Richard relocated to Carolina Beach, NC, beginning Kepley Real Estate. At age 29, he won a seat on the city council, later serving as Mayor of Carolina Beach for six years. He was instrumental in getting insurance companies to provide coverage for property east of the inland waterway. He also, worked with state and federal agencies to improve the community’s water system—essential for the future growth of the island. He served on the Board of Directors of the NC League of Municipalities and the Chamber of Commerce, was President of the Board of Realtors, was a Director of First National Bank of Eastern NC, and was appointed to the U.S.S.N.C. Battleship Commission, later being named Treasurer of the Commission by Governor Jim Hunt.
In 1980, he was asked to bring his real estate experience to Florida, assisting Chicago developer Edward McArdle in developing the Spanish Wells Country Club Community in Bonita Springs, FL. Richard went on to hold the title of Executive Vice President and CEO of all Florida Operations for DCI Communities, Inc., overseeing the development and construction of golf course communities, single-family homes, townhomes, high-rise condominiums, and marinas, throughout Southwest Florida. He served on the SWFL Community Commission, working on Interstate 75 and he shepherded the sale of the 2,200-acre parcel to Bonita Bay Properties that would become The Brooks in Estero, FL. In 2006 he returned home to Lexington, NC, where he retired.
Known as a generous man with his time and resources, he believed his greatest legacy was his family. He loved the Lord and knew that relationship was all he could take with him. He enjoyed hunting and was an avid yachtsman—enjoying the water and boating, but most of all, the planning and refurbishment of old yachts.
He was preceded in death by his parents and his daughter Charity Ann Kepley, and is survived by his wife of 49 years, DiAnne Davis Kepley; his children Tippy Varner (Nathan), Sydney Kempson (Craig), Richard (Bart) Kepley Jr. (Kristyl), and Hope Kepley; his sister, Dee Jarvis; grandchildren, Brendan Varner (Jenny), Katherine Varner
Shoaf, William Creech, Grace Kempson, Isabel Kempson, Lachlann Kepley, Cannon Kepley, and Deacon Kepley; great-grandchildren, Holland Shoaf, Elizabeth Shoaf, Jay Varner, Andrew Varner; and two special nephews, Roger Jarvis (Robin) and Rick Jarvis (Karen).
There will be a memorial service Friday, May 7, 2021, at 2:00 pm at the Veteran's National Cemetery in Salisbury, NC., Military Honors will be provided by the Lyerly Volunteer Joint Forces Honor Guard.
Lyerly Funeral Home is serving the Kepley family. On line condolences may be made at www.lyerlyfuneralhome.com or to the home at 1308 Overhill Rd., Salisbury, NC 28144.
Memorials may be made in his memory to VA Hospice, W.G. Hefner Medical Center,
1601 Brenner Ave., Voluntary Services, Bldg. 6, room 1010, Salisbury, NC 28144.
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