Dustin Nathanael Ledford

Dustin Nathanael Ledford, 24, of Cleveland, went into the arms of God unexpectedly Saturday morning, July 10, 2010 from injuries sustained in an automobile accident. He will be remembered by many for his involvement in sports from the age of four, starting with baseball at Industrial Park and continuing at Blue Springs Ball Park. He attended Oak Grove Elementary where he played basketball. He also attended Trewhitt Junior High (Lake Forest) where he played basketball and baseball. He continued enjoying the game of baseball where he played for his alma mater, Bradley High School. He graduated from Bradley High School in 2004. He also attended Cleveland State Community College. He was currently employed at Shane’s Rib Shack. He attended Waterville Baptist Church. He was preceded in death by his maternal grandfather, Edward Mital; paternal grandparents, George Ledford and Flora Ledford; step-grandfather, Joseph Ford; great aunt, Marie Sullivan; and cousin, Allison Ledford. He is survived by his parents, Danny and Kim Ledford of Cleveland; the love of his life, Lindsey Lewis and her daughter, Serenity of Cleveland; three sisters, Tiphanie Grimes of Rossville, GA, Brandi Sisk of Monroe, LA and Sierra Bolin of Cleveland; grandmother, Orena Ford of Cleveland; step-grandmother, Genevieve Ledford of Cleveland; several aunts and uncles, Linda and Glenn McConnell of Charlotte, NC, Sherry and Gene North of Morristown, Debby and Tom Mainor of Dayton and Johnny and Billie Ledford and Betty and Jeff Higdon, all of Cleveland; nieces, Natalie and Katelyn Sisk; and numerous cousins. He will be greatly missed by a host of friends and his dogs, Bogey and Drey. Funeral services will be conducted on Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at 11:00 a.m. in the chapel of Ralph Buckner Funeral Home with Pastor Alan Lovelace and Pastor Joe Brooks officiating. Interment will follow in Sunset Memorial Gardens with Ben Mainor, Blake Crabtree, Chris Brown, Nick Ballard, Andrew Nipper, Mikey Jefferson, Mike Bails and Josh Goode serving as pallbearers. Honorary pallbearers will be Dustin’s past coaches and teammates. A white dove release ceremony will conclude the service. His family will receive friends from 4:00-8:00 p.m. Monday at the funeral home. Dustin’s parents were blessed with their son for 24 years through the selfless gift of adoption; Dustin meaning “valiant” and Nathanael meaning “gift of God.” The family suggests that memorials be made to the Waterville Baptist Church Building Fund, 3722 Dalton Pike SE, Cleveland, TN 37323. We invite you to send a message of condolence and view the Ledford family guestbook at www.ralphbuckner.com.