Lloyd Inman Hodges, Sr.

On November 13, 2021, Lloyd Inman Hodges, Sr. went peacefully to be with his Lord and Savior while at his home and surrounded by his family.  Inman was born in Statesboro, GA on June 27, 1931 to Loyd Thomas and Lillie Belle Hodges.  After graduating from Statesboro High School, he attended Georgia Military College in Milledgeville, GA where he met his wife and the love of his life, Mary Sue Lovell.   Inman and Mary Sue were married on December 31, 1950 and remained as much in love nearly seventy-one years later as they were on that New Year’s Eve in 1950.

Inman’s passion was the restaurant company that he and Mary Sue began in 1957 with the purchase of a small restaurant located at the corner of South Main Street and Tillman Road in Statesboro named the College Grill, later to become the Paragon Restaurant.  Inman became a Kentucky Fried Chicken franchisee in 1963 and, working side by side with Mary Sue, built a business that would eventually include multiple Kentucky Fried Chicken, Taco Bell, Pizza Inn, and Dairy Queen restaurants.  Inman found great joy in growing the company and the daily conversations he shared with those who worked with him.

Inman will be greatly missed by Mary Sue, his loving wife and partner of seventy-one years, his children; Inman Gregory Hodges (Cindy), Janis Hodges Bell (Les), and Lloyd Inman Hodges, Jr. (Vicki); and his  sisters, Fay H. Goodson and Barbara Butler.  He will be dearly remembered by his grandchildren, Mary Kathryn Brown, Fulton Hodges, Klara Hodges, and Emily Hodges; and missed by his faithful dog Beau.

The family would like to give a special thanks to the wonderful angels who have so unselfishly cared for Inman and our family during his illness: Pete Houston, Pearl Johnson, Melinda Walden, Carrie Roberts, Chryl Johnson, Gloria Dekle, and Alberto Rodriguez.

Visitation will be held Tuesday, November 16, 2021 from 4:00 until 6:00 PM at Deal Funeral Directors.

The funeral service will be held Wednesday, November 17, 2021 at 11:00 AM at the Statesboro First United Methodist Church.

Pallbearers: Robert Ruffo, Bebo Gray, Dr. Johnny Martin, Bill Olliff, Dr. John Hodges, Michael Joiner,  Dr. Gray Norris, Parrish Neville, and Harold Parker, Jr.

Honorary Pallbearers: Inman’s friends at the Statesboro Rotary Club as well as the Dan Williams Sunday School Class at Statesboro First UMC.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the First United Methodist Church Building Fund, P.O Box 2048, Statesboro, GA 30459.