Walter Baird Garrott, Jr., age 78, died on March 3, 2018, in Greenwood, Miss., the town of his birth. Walter was born on November 14, 1939, to parents, Walter Baird Garrott and Davie Pittman Garrott, both deceased.

Walter received a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and was in the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. Upon graduation, he attended the U.S. Naval Officers Candidate School, War College and Justice School, which prepared him for six years of honorable service in the U.S. Navy (1963-1969), where he attained the rank of Lieutenant Commander.

Walter served in the Viet Nam War and was sent to missions in Cuba, the Antarctic and other places around the world. He received the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnamese Service Medal, the Fleet Marine Force Combat Operations Insignia and Vietnamese Campaign Medal, the Antarctica Service Medal, as well as the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V."

Post military, Walter settled into a life-long career in the brokerage business, working for prestigious firms such as Merrill Lynch, EFHutton, and Dean Witter Reynolds, among others, and he achieved the position of Vice President at both EFHutton and Dean Witter. During his decades long career in finance, Walter's knowledge and expertise led him to specialize in commodities futures.

Walter's personal life was rich, and he left behind many close friends and relatives, including son, Walter Baird Garrott, III and his wife Jamie Sandusky Garrott, grandsons, Walter Baird Garrott IV and Thomas Garrott of Dallas, Texas; step-daughter, Bonita Longwater Davies and her husband Dr. Christopher Davies, grandsons, Bayden and George Davies and granddaughter Isabel Davies of Charleston, SC; brother, Dr. Thomas Garrott and wife Anne Garrott of Ocean Springs, Miss., along with niece, Juli Garrott Iannelli and her husband Dr. Richard Iannelli and their children Garrott and Alden of Nashville, Tenn.; and niece, Jenni Garrott of Charleston, SC.

Services for Walter Garrott will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, March 23, 2018, at the North MS Veterans Memorial Cemetery, 9 Link Knox Rd, Kilmichael, MS 39747. The family requests that friends and family who wish to honor Walter's life donate to their favorite charity.