Bishop Ellis William Hollifield

Bishop Ellis William Hollifield, 88, went home to be with his Lord Saturday April 28, 2012 at his home. A native of Buncombe County, he was the former Operations Director for The Church of God International Offices in Cleveland TN. He was also a former chaplain with the Asheville Police Department and the North Carolina Highway Patrol. He had also served as Pastor for 7 different churches. He was also a U. S. Army Veteran of WWII and a former Pilot with the North Carolina Civil Air Patrol. Bishop Hollifield was the son of the late Daniel Wilson Hollifield and Edith Brown Hollifield and the husband of the late Rosa Lee Snipes Hollifield. He was also preceded in death by a son, Larry William Hollifield; grandson, Rodney Hollifield and sisters, Nina Wyatt and Dorothy Foxx. Surviving are his wife, Betty D. Yates Hollifield; daughters, Linda Hipps of Asheville and Sandra Lee Wargel of Stringer, MS; son, Rev. Charles B. Hollifield of Cleveland, TN; 10 grandchildren, 20 great grandchildren and 3 great great grandchildren and his special friend and caregiver, Russell Fender. Funeral Services will be held at 1:00 P.M. Tuesday at West Asheville Church of God with Rev. Larry Hollifield, Jr., Rev. Aaron Hollifield and Rev. Charles Hollifield officiating. Burial will be in Forest Lawn Memorial Park with Pastor Roger Lunsford and Pastor Kevin D. Chapman officiating. The family will receive friends from 6 to 8:00 P.M. Monday at Anders-Rice Funeral Home and Bishop Hollifield will also lie in state one hour before services at the church on Tuesday. The family wishes to thank The Asheville VA Homebound Health Providers for the care they provided for our loved one. Memorials may be made to: Disabled Americans Veterans Assoc., P.O. Box 14301, Cincinnati, OH 45250-0301.