Samuel Dickerson

Samuel Lafayette Dickerson, Sr., was born to the late Rev. James Dickerson and the late Mary Harper Dickerson, on May 19, 1945. He is the sixth of nine children. Samuel was a member of the Mount Zion Holiness Fire Baptized Church in Jersey City, New Jersey. He attended and graduated from Hendy Snyder High School, and later attended the CSN Community College, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Samuel joined the United States Air Force in 1965 and served as an Aircraft Mechanic. He was also called to the Gospel Ministry of Jesus Christ after joining the Air Force. After a tour of duty overseas, he met and married Diedre D. Riley on May 2, 1970, and for 52 years they have loved and been committed to each other. After a seven-year tour of duty in Tucson, Arizona, Samuel served as Junior Pastor before his next assignment in Okinawa, Japan, where he was ordained for the Gospel Ministry of Jesus Christ under Bishop Buchanan. He and his family moved to Nellis Air Force Base Las Vegas until his retirement in October 1988. While stationed in Las Vegas, Samuel also worked part-time with Clark County School District from 1981 until 2014.

Preceding him in death are his father and mother; sisters Muriel, Miss Carolyn, Charlotte, Vanelya, Lillian, and Alice; brother, James Jr.; and his son, David Dickerson. Cherishing his memory are his wife, Diedre Dickerson; two sons, Samuel Jr., and Christopher (Kim); four grandsons, Christopher Jr., Matthew, Alexander, and Nathanial; two great-grandchildren, great-granddaughter Naomi, and great-grandson Isaac; one brother, Joseph Dickerson (Arnetha) of Clayton, NC; and an abundance of nieces, nephews, cousins, and loving friends.