Stephens died on February 5, 2005. Before passing away at the age of 93 in 2005, Stephens and his wife, who preceded him in death in 1996, spent the last few decades of their lives donating millions to charity, educational institutions, the arts and various civic causes. Select the pencil to add details. A former employee of the Justice Department, Hoover accepted his new position on the proviso that the bureau was to be completely divorced from politics and that the director report only to the attorney general. Burke is charged with kidnapping Elton Stephens Jr., the son of EBSCO Industries founder Elton Stephens Sr. Burke is scheduled for sentencing Nov. 2, where he faces up to 17 years in prison. He was a native of New Orleans, LA and graduated from McDonogh #35 High School and Xavier University. She was the first wife of Alabama governor George Wallace, whom she succeeded as governor because the Alabama constitution forbade consecutive terms. According to previous testimony and court records, the suspects entered Stephens Crest Road rental home about 2 a.m. Elton and Jim also contributed $15 million towards the $26 million Elton B. Stephens Science Center at Birmingham-Southern. Driven by his love of a challenge and his passion for classical music, In 1937 he obtained a franchise with Keystone Readers Service, a middleman between subscribers and publishers of such magazines as the Saturday Evening Post and Ladies Home Journal. They are also charged in state court and awaiting indictment consideration by a Jefferson County grand jury. One of the vehicles belonged to Stephens but the detective said the suspects made him sign a $10 bill of sale for his truck. There will be a service to celebrate his life at 2:00 pm, Thursday, March 7, 2019 at the First United Methodist Church, Wadesboro with the Rev. 2023 Ronald V. Hall Funeral Home. A 2014 report on the world's super-rich by the wealth research firm Wealth-X listed her fortune at $1.8 billion. Marshals are now searching for Burke after they became aware Monday that Burke was no longer in custody, U.S. Authorities went there on Saturday, Sept. 12, and both Burke and Hodges were there. Every memory left on the online obituary will be automatically included in the book. To cover the rest of his costs, the enterprising young man worked full-time as a salesman in a local dry goods store. Join Facebook to connect with Elton B. Stephens and others you may know. A search is underway for the man convicted in the kidnapping of prominent Birmingham businessman Elton B. Stephens after he was accidentally released from jail. Procha Patrice Williams was tragically struck and killed by a vehicle on Jan. 8 in Birmingham. Family and friends are coming together online to create a special keepsake. Burke was sentenced to 17 years in prison for kidnapping Elton B. Stephens Jr. last year, according to jail records. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. The most disturbing images were of children - a daycare center was hit by the bomb. But it is highly likely that the Harberts will no longer be able to claim that the richest living Alabamian is a member of their privileged family tree. Eventually the group left the house with Stephens in a vehicle with Burke, and Hodges following in another vehicle with her two kids. Stephens, Jr. most recently served as . Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. After waking Stephens, Burke asked the victim how much money he had and if he had any real estate holdings, according to the plea agreement. He was a native of Montgomery County, growing up in Mt. Stephens family member is 71. Who is Elton Stephens to you? Burke replied, Forever or just for today?, At one point, records state, Burke asked Stephens, How much life do you think you have left? Stephens replied, 10 years., Burke then said, I think you got 20 more, I think you do. The maximum penalty for conspiracy is 5 years in prison. Because private wealth is not a matter of public record, there's no telling if a sleeper billionaire is holed up somewhere in a rural Alabama cabin, or perhaps even sitting at the helm of one of the state's other successful companies. He is currently safe, and two suspects are in custody. In 1928, after graduating from Barbour County High School, Elton set off for Birmingham-Southern College with just $125. "The business is as much a part of the family as the family is part of the business," explains founder, 90-year-old Elton B. Stephens. View the profiles of people named Elton B. Stephens. He taught Mathematics at Walter L. Cohen and Booker T. Washington High Schools. After waking Stephens, Burke asked the victim how much money he had and if he had any real estate holdings, according to the plea agreement. Another Alabamian who has not been identified as a billionaire by Forbes -- long considered the leading authority on the topic -- is George Barber. Obituary. Funeral Home website by. What schools or universities did Elton attend? For the Stephens family, it all traces back to patriarch, the late Elton B. Stephens, and a $5,000 investment he made to start a business in 1944 along with his wife, Alys Robinson Stephens. Stephens at some point asked kidnappers what it would take for them to leave him alone and Hodges replied, $400,000. One of the vehicles belonged to Stephens but the detective said the suspects made him sign a $10 bill of sale for his truck. Harbert is survived by three children, six grandchildren and three great-granddaughters, "plus many loving nieces and nephews," her obituary in the Birmingham News and AL.com reads. North America. Burke replied, Forever or just for today?, At one point, records state, Burke asked Stephens, How much life do you think you have left? Stephens replied, 10 years., Burke then said, I think you got 20 more, I think you do. He was a loving husband and a faithful friend. U.S. FUNERAL HOME. For the Stephens family, it all traces back to patriarch, the late Elton B. Stephens, and a $5,000 investment he made to start a business in 1944 along with his wife, Alys Robinson Stephens. Our History. At one point, earlier testimony showed, Burke told Stephens if he did anything to make Hodges feel uncomfortable, it wont end well for you.. Later questioned by authorities as to how she came up with that amount, Hodges replied, it sounded like a big number.. When we share what we know, together we discover more. Stephens became one of the first members of the United Way's Million Dollar Roundtable of top contributors and he established the Alabama Percent Club, which honors businesses that give 10 percent, 5 percent or 2 percent of pre-tax income to charity. You can still show your support by sending flowers directly to the family, or plant a tree in memory of Elton Stephens. Elton Stephens, Sr.'s wife, Alys Robinson Stephens, passed away in 1996, leaving the couple's four children, Elton B. Stephens, Jr., James T. Stephens, Jane S. Comer and Dell S. Brooke, as the only remaining members of his nuclear family. The state charges against Burke were dismissed Friday after a grand jury did not indict him. 22 years longer than Updated: November 4, 2011 . - After four decades at Elton B. Stephens Co. (EBSCO), President and CEO F. Dixon Brooke Jr. announced his plans to retire at the end of this current fiscal year, June 30, 2014. Williams, 34, was hit at about 2:28 a.m. after exiting her disabled vehicle on the Elton B. Stephens Expressway. He was a member and deacon of Voice of GraceMinistries in Vidalia. According to his will -- dated April 12, 1993, and filed with the probate court shortly after his death on Feb. 5, 2005 -- the Stephens patriarch named his four children as his heirs. Facebook gives people the. Dr. Sarah B. Kalish officiating. In addition to a lifetime of business and financial endeavors, Elton has committed his life to enrich the world around him. Perhaps that will be enough incentive for Mr. Burke to turn himself in, Spina said. He was released only after he wired $250,000 to a bank account of the alleged kidnappers. Hodges two children ages 11 and 13 were with Hodges and Burke throughout the entire ordeal. Family and friends are coming together online to create a special keepsake. Roughly two hours of the abduction were recorded on Stephens sleep apnea app. He was released only after he wired $250,000 to a bank account of the alleged kidnappers. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Previous state court testimony indicated Stephens whose family was ranked by Forbes magazine in 2014 as the 66th wealthiest in America - did not know his abductors. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Hodges was sentenced to 12 years in prison. He was a native of Montgomery County, growing up in Mt. Hodges told investigators Stephens had given the items to them willingly, but court records stated that they said they would kill him if he called anyone. You can still show your support by sending flowers directly to the family, 2023 McKenzie Mortuary. Biographies are our place to remember and discover more about the people important to us. She also initially said that the kidnapping was all her idea, not her boyfriends, but later said that was a lie. can stop at any time. Share profits and protect the welfare and health of employees with a major catastrophic medical program. That led them to the location where Stephens had been taken. Elton Bryson Stephens Sr. (19112005) was an American businessman from Alabama, who founded EBSCO Industries. Andrews said Elton and Alys Stephens helped establish some of the museum's best collections and all four of the Stephens children have continued to support the acquisition of new art. The city and state honored Stephens' support of civic projects by renaming the Red Mountain Expressway the "Elton B. Stephens Expressway" on Sept. 11, 1975. When 2 or more people share their unique perspectives, Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Looking for Elton Stephens online? He is preceded in death by his wife of 52 years, Alys Varian Robinson Stephens, who died on the same day, 1996, and by his five . His father Elton B. Stephens started the company . The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Where was Elton born and where did he live? The Biography piece is collaborative, where we work together to present the facts. After graduating from law school, Elton found that he could earn only $75 a month as a lawyer while selling magazines would bring in some $100 a week. Liberty County. As listed in Whos Who, they encompass both the capitalistic and altruistic aspects of his personality: Invest/reinvest earnings to create employment/profits for growth/expansion. That meant I didnt have to work as much during the school year, so I could study more. Study and concentrate on his college romance with Alys Varian Robinson, whom he dated for seven years before the two married. All Rights Reserved. Born . That led them to the location where Stephens had been taken. These philosophies built a company I started in 1943 with capital of $5,000 and sales under $1,000,000, and fewer than 20 employees to annual sales of more than $1 billion on June 30, 1997; over 4,000 employees and 100 profit centers operating worldwide with adequate capital to continue growth. Vernon, and was a 1968 graduate of Montgomery County High School. According to law enforcement, Burke and Tabatha Nicole Hodges, 22, broke into a house Stephens was staying at in Jefferson County as he slept on September . EBSCO Industries is now so diverse it deals with everything from investments to library periodicals, plastic fishing lures to steel joists, indoor advertising to realty, with Eltons love of selling seemingly forever moving the company forward into new markets. Authorities went there on Saturday, Sept. 12, and both Burke and Hodges were there. Friends can be as close as family. [2] They also paid $15 million for the construction of the Elton B. Stephens Science Center on the campus of BirminghamSouthern College. We have no idea how Forbes could have so wrongly made this estimate. LIONEL STEPHENS OBITUARY. Good healthy years, being successful in whatever it is you may choose to do, after this, as long as you do it right.. Death . Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. If Garry Drummond truly is a billionaire, he would likely be the richest Alabamian, but he has not been identified as such by Forbes, and his personal finances, like those of other Alabama residents, are not available to the public. Vernon, and was a 1968 graduate of Montgomery County High School. He served four years in the U.S. Army and returned to Mt. Mr. Elton Stephens, age 71, of Tarrytown, died Thursday, January 21, 2021, in Meadows Health in Vidalia after an brief illness. "He took a six-panel wood door and put a steering wheel on it and a lawn mower engine on the back and four tires," Stephens recalls of the elder. The family was worth roughly $4 billion in 2014 and previously ranked 66th on Forbes list of America . A small-town boy, 11 Elton quickly learned the value of money. There is almost certainly more to this story. In fact, there are several potential billionaire Alabama residents, and because details about their private finances are not publicly available, it is next to impossible to verify just how much money they have. Vernon where he lived until moving to Tarrytown in 1989. Elton B. Stephens, Jr., the retired CEO of EBSCO Industries, was reportedly kidnapped from his bed last Friday and held for ransom. He was born on October 24, 1926 in Hall Summit, Louisiana to the late Roy Henry and Tommie Lee Fletcher Stephens. Discover how our Uncovering Our Shared Memories: An Introduction to the Community Standards at AncientFaces EBSCO quickly expanded; Elton saw the need for magazine racks at Fort McClellan and other places and formed Vulcan Industries to make them. By 1936, at 25 years old, Elton had graduated from the University of Alabama Law School and was earning more money weekly managing sales people part-time than a starting . On Friday, Dec. 10, he was accidently released from the Jefferson County Jail after state charges were dismissed. Tommy Spina, attorney for Stephens, said Burke could face an additional five years in prison if convicted of escape. Burke went on to say, according to testimony, that he had bought the house two weeks before which was not true. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. STEPHENS, ELTON BRYSON, was born August 4, 1911, and died February 5, 2005. All rights reserved (About Us). Taking 5 years to build, the 4,200-foot-long suspension bridge was an engineering marvel of its time - 11 men died during construction. Elton Stephens . After hearing that Peary had beaten him to the North Pole, Amundsen decided to tackle the South Pole. Previous state court testimony indicated Stephens did not know his abductors. [5] They met as students at Birmingham-Southern College and graduated together in 1932. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. He once tried to swap me a nickel for a dime saying it was bigger and had more value. She also initially said that the kidnapping was all her idea, not her boyfriends, but later said that was a lie. Vernon where he lived until . And so it went through the years, one thing leading to another. Mr. Elton L. Tebo Stephens, 89, of Wadesboro, NC, went home to be with the Lord on Sunday, March 3, 2019. The most disturbing images were of children - a daycare center was hit by the bomb in 2014 previously. Enterprising young man worked full-time as a salesman in a local dry goods store I you! 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