Obituaries

Marion Donnie Dutton

Photo of Marion Donnie Dutton
Dr. Marion Donnie Dutton, 79 of Fayetteville, Ark. passed away Saturday, January 10, 2014 in Fayetteville, Ark. He was born October 3, 1935 in Wadesboro, N.C. to Marion Battle Dutton and Dorothy Rayfield Dutton who preceded him in death. Graduated from high school at age 15 and attended NC State University, graduating with a BS in 1955 at age 19. He began teaching vocational agriculture in high school at that young age. He received his Masters Degree from NC State in 1961, and completed his Ph. D. in 1967 from Florida State University in Adult and Continuing Education. In 1968 he was recruited to Memphis State University and founded the department of Adult Education. In 1974, he was recruited to the University of Arkansas where he also founded that department. He was a past president of the American Association of Adult and Continuing Education. He served as an advisor to President Jimmy Carter and his commission on adult education and also to then governor Bill Clinton in Arkansas in a similar capacity. In 1984, he agreed to an interim job as the temporary Dean of the College of Continuing Education at U of A. He stayed at that job until his eventual retirement in 2007. Though a lifelong member of Long Pine Methodist Church in North Carolina, he was very active at CUMC in Fayetteville. He dedicated much of the last 15 years of his life to teaching Sunday School to the homebound members of the church via teleconference each week. Donnie was an avid bluegrass musician and was known far and wide for his accomplishments in that arena. He was master of the guitar, the banjo, and the mandolin. He played with many different groups over the years and toured across the country playing at many festivals and other venues. He was a former champion of the Arkansas State Guitar Finger Picking contest. He once played a bluegrass performance at Carnegie Hall in New York City. He is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Buff Dutton to whom he was married for 57 wonderful years, one son, Mark Dutton of Fayetteville (wife Kim), one brother, Charles Dutton of Lake Charles, La. (Marcia), three sisters; Gail Dutton Preslar of Wadesboro, N.C., Judy Dutton Poulnott of Wadesboro, N.C., and Kathy Dutton Carroll (Joel) of Hudson, N.C., three grandchildren; Lauren Dutton Robinson of Columbia, S.C. (Spencer), James Garrett Dutton of Brooklyn, N.Y., Mitchell P. Dutton of Fayetteville, Ark., two great-grandchildren: Parker Fox Robinson and Elizabeth Spencer Robinson both of Columbia, S.C. A memorial service will be held at Central United Methodist Church in Fayetteville at 3 p.m. on Wednesday January 14. A visitation will be held on Tuesday, January 13 at Nelson Berna Funeral Home from 5-7 p.m. He will be laid to rest at Long Pine Cemetery on the grounds of his long time church home of Long Pine Methodist Church in Wadesboro, N.C. In Lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to Long Pine Methodist Church, 8472 Hwy. 109 South, Wadesboro, N.C. 28170. To sign online guest book please visit www.nelsonberna.com.

Published January 13, 2015

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