Episode 65
#65. Three Cackling Yahoos
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PodStreet Generated · Provider: Local-mlx-whisper · Model: mlx-community/whisper-large-v3-turbo · Generated At 2026-09-08 09:21:16
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Mike O'Meara, Radio Entertainment.
On Tuesday, February 16, 2016, at the age of 101, Ira Clifford White said a final goodbye
to those he loved and left to be with the Lord. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 56
years, O'Dayna Dora, their oldest daughter, Ronnie Kay, and her husband, Joe Waldrop, as well as six
of his siblings, all of whom are wondering what took him so long to join their party in heaven.
Ira was born in January of 1915 to Ira Cleveland White and May Hart Wolf White of Culloden.
He was baptized in the waters of Balls Branch as a member of the Culloden Baptist Church.
He worked from a young age across the region with the White Family Sawmill and the White
and Hanley Drilling Company. At the age of 17, in order to help support his family of 11,
he joined the Civilian Conservation Corps, some know it as the CCC, during the Great Depression,
where he spent time in the Canaan Valley building cabins and clearings for the State Park Service.
In March of 1938, after having returned to the oil and gas business, he met O'Dayna Dora Matthews,
and within two weeks, called her his bride.
In their lifetime together, they welcomed into the world two daughters and a son, Ronnie Kay,
Robin Lynette, and Roderick Matthew.
Ira joined Ironworkers Local 301 in 1941 and was sent as part of a crew to Tennessee to work
on what was then called the Secret City, later to be known as the Manhattan Project.
In 1944, at the age of 28, Ira volunteered to answer the call of our nation and join the Navy.
He served in the Pacific Theater aboard the USS Missouri and the USS Tosig, as well as part of
Desron 61, one of the first forces to invade Tokyo Bay, which contributed to Japan's surrender.
He was honorably discharged in 1946.
However, his sense of civic duty was something that drove his life even after he returned home to Culloden, West Virginia.
He actively supported local schools, was pivotal in the founding of the Culloden Volunteer Fire Department,
as well as the Culloden Public Service District, which to this day provides city-managed water and sewer
to the tiny, unincorporated community.
His professional life led him through many grand builds, including Topper Rock,
the Charleston National Bank Building, which at the time was the tallest building in the capital city of West Virginia,
and many of the schools built in the area from 1960 to 1980.
He retired as general superintendent from industrial construction in Charleston.
In his personal life, Ira was a 50-plus year member and 32nd degree Freemason.
He was an avid member of the Culloden Lions Club, the Benny Cadham Shriners of Charleston,
and the American Legion, post-139.
His personal life was as vibrant as the hills he loved to explore as a fisherman and RV traveling camper.
He took his family on many adventures both inside and outside of the West Virginia hills.
He is greatly beloved and will be forever missed by those of us who remain behind.
His impact on both his family and community has been immeasurable.
His death marks the end of a family chapter that will be read and re-read throughout the generations
to teach and remember all of the history that has afforded our existence to be so joyous.
Cake and cookies.
Rob and Katie.
It's the Rob and Katie Show.
Good job, you.
Thank you.
You think you can piece that together with my sniffles?
That's not an easy task, the old obituary slash eulogy,
especially for someone that had been around that long and contributed so much.
So I say well done.
I bet he's very proud of you.
That's my papa.
Need a breath?
I assure you, I'm far more proud than he.
Welcome, everybody.
Remember us?
Yeah, we used to do a podcast.