Clarence Lee Tedder Jr., known to all as CL, age 81, died peacefully surrounded by his wife and daughter on Wednesday, July 19, 2017. Born on May 9, 1936 in Fairmont, NC, CL was the son of Clarence Lee Tedder Sr. and Margaret Belle Mitchell Tedder. He was preceded in death by his parents, his first wife, Peggy Ann Barber Tedder, his siblings; John C. Tedder, Byron Lee Tedder, William Charles Tedder, and Audrey Tedder Delong, and one granddaughter.

CL leaves behind to cherish his memory his loving wife, Bobbi Tedder; adoring daughter Margaret Daulton, husband Rick, and grandson Trey of Littleton, Colorado; three step-children, Mark Tyson, Steve Tyson (and wife Tina), and Dianne Whiteman (and husband David); six grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; brothers Donald Tedder and wife Faye of Clemmons, and Randall Tedder of Fairmont; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Upon his high school graduation, CL served in the Air Force from 1958 to 1962. After his honorable discharge from the Air Force, CL returned to his hometown of Fairmont. He married Peggy Ann Barber in 1963 and they had one daughter, Margaret. They moved to Raleigh in 1971. Peggy succumbed to breast cancer in 1991, and shortly thereafter CL met Bobbi Tyson, whom he married in 1995. CL and Bobbi previously lived at Lake Royale and have resided in Holly Springs since 2004.

CL was an auto mechanic, specializing in wheel alignments. He worked at Sears Auto Center for 20 years, and Pep Boys thereafter. Prior to his retirement in 2009, CL worked for Bobby Murray Chevrolet as a delivery driver. He enjoyed meeting new people and socializing with his customers.

CL's passion was flying. He earned his private pilot's license in the mid-70s. Shortly thereafter he joined the Civil Air Patrol, an all-volunteer US Air Force auxiliary group. He was involved in multiple rescue and recovery missions, and formed life-long friendships with many in the CAP family. Another pastime of CL's was tinkering with electronics and sound systems. He had quite the electronics setup at home and enjoyed working on friends and family's systems in his spare time.

If you were lucky enough to know CL, then you were truly blessed. His wonderful sense of humor and contagious smile put everyone around him at ease. He loved to joke around and if he liked you, then he called you a "rascal" or a "turkey". Another sign of affection from CL was a very light punch to your upper arm. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him, especially all of us turkeys and rascals with a slightly bruised arm.

A funeral service will be held on Saturday, July 22 at 2:00 PM at Montlawn Funeral Home and Memorial Park, 2911 S. Wilmington St., Raleigh, NC 27603. The family will receive friends and relatives at 1:00, prior to the funeral service.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations may be made to Transitions HospiceCare (transitionslifecare.org/donate) or to Apex Baptist Missions (110 S. Salem St., Apex, NC 27502).