Funeral services for Mr. Tommy D. Sanders, Sr., age 86, of Baytown, TX formerly of Gary, TX, will be held at 1 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 25, 2011, at Eastside Baptist Church in Gary with Bro. Dale Walker officiating under the direction of Jimerson-Lipsey Funeral Home. Interment will follow in Gary Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Friday at the church prior to the service. Mr. Sanders passed away on Sunday night, Nov. 20, 2011, in Baytown.

Mr. Tommy D. Sanders, Sr. was born on May 12, 1925, in Temple, OK to D.W. and Hallie Spurlock Sanders. He attended school in Temple, OK and graduated from Lawton, OK High School with the class of 1943. Mr. Sanders served his country in the U.S. Navy during WWII and was honorably discharged. He married Bettie Pearl Foster on Aug. 21, 1945, in San Francisco, CA. Mr. Sanders worked as a plant supervisor for Celanese Chemical which is now Solvay Chemical until his retirement. He was a member of the Eastside Baptist Church in Gary where he sang in the adult choir. Mr. Sanders was preceded in death by his parents; four brothers; and one sister.

Mr. Sanders is survived by his loving wife of 66 years, Bettie Sanders of Baytown; two sons, Tommy D. "Sandy" Sanders, Jr. and wife Judy of Baytown and Curtis R. "Dusty" Sanders and wife Jeanie of Burleson; five grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren. Numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives, and many friends also survive Mr. Sanders.

Serving as pallbearers are Eddie Hoskins, Nolan Ashbranner, Michael Sanders, Luke Yokeley, Aaron Pistokache, and Sydney Burns.

A guestbook may be signed online at www.jimerson-lipsey.com.