Malcom Harley Walls

Malcom Harley Walls Sr., known to family and friends as Harley, passed away peacefully at his home on Walls Lane on August 18th, 2026, at the age of 92. Harley was a husband, father, brother, uncle, grandfather, and great-grandfather whose long life was measured not simply in years, but in the family he loved, the work of his hands, the lessons he passed down, and the memories he leaves behind.

Harley was born on October 26, 1933, in the Central Grove community of Monroe County, Mississippi, to Will and Ophelia Walls. Born into a sharecropper family, Harley learned early the value of hard work and the satisfaction of knowing how to do things with his own hands. He listened to and learned from his elders, gaining an education that went well beyond the classroom. They taught him the ways of agriculture and the land, how to work with horses and mules, operate and repair tractors and equipment, and the skills of blacksmithing. Those early lessons stayed with him for the rest of his life.

Harley attended grade school at Wren and Hatley and graduated from Becker High School in 1951. As a young man, Harley joined the United States Army and proudly served his country. After his military service, he made his living in a number of ways, always relying on the mechanical ability, resourcefulness, and work ethic that had been part of him since childhood. Over the years, Harley worked with used cars and operated a garage. He built and painted truck bodies and became an accomplished welder and fabricator. He finished his working career as a heavy equipment operator. But Harley's ability to work with his hands was never simply a job. If something made of steel could be built, repaired, welded, cut, or put back into shape, chances were Harley could do it. A welder and grinder in his hands were more than tools; they were part of a lifetime of knowledge that began as a boy watching and learning from the men who came before him.

He married the love of his life, Patricia Herring “Pat” Walls, in 1959, and together they built a life and a family that would become Harley's greatest legacy. Harley was the proud father of two sons, Malcolm Harley "Mal" Walls Jr. and Jonathan "Jon" Walls. As their family grew, he became a grandfather and great-grandfather, roles that brought him great pride and joy.

In his younger years, Harley was an active church member and Sunday school teacher. As he grew older, he stepped back from those roles, but he never abandoned his faith in Christ. Harley could spend hours talking with others about who Christ was, why He came, and looking forward to His return. His faith was also reflected in the way he treated people. If Harley could help you, he would. He left this world with little in the way of material wealth, but he was rich in generosity, compassion, and a willingness to give what he had. He tried to live by the simple teaching of Christ: to do unto others as he would have them do unto him. Harley spent a lifetime talking about the return of Christ. His family takes comfort in knowing that the Savior he spent so many years waiting for is the Savior he has now gone home to meet. Harley is survived by his wife, Patricia “Pat” Walls; his sons, Malcolm “Mal” Walls Jr. and Jonathan “Jon” Walls, and their families; his siblings, Martha Pearson and Jerry Walls; his grandchildren, Bryce, Jonah, Keegan and Elijah Walls, Carley Buchanan, Conner Wall, and Chloe; and his great-grandchild and the light of his eyes, Kaulder, numerous in-laws nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Will and Ophelia Walls; his brothers, David, Jim and Jesse Walls; and his sister, Ruby Keeton. Harley was, in many ways, the memory of the Walls family and of an older Monroe County. The Walls family came to Monroe County in the early 1800s and was among the early families of Cotton Gin Port, the settlement along the Tombigbee River that preceded present-day Amory. Harley carried those generations of family history with him. He remembered the old stories of the river bottom—stories of the people who lived there, the land they worked, the hardships they endured, and a way of life that had largely disappeared. He shared those stories with his children and grandchildren, passing along not only names and dates, but the memories of generations who came before them. In that way, Harley was a bridge between worlds. He grew up working the land with horses and mules and lived long enough to see a world his parents and grandparents could scarcely have imagined. Yet through all those changes, he never lost his connection to the land, his family, or the lessons he learned as a boy in Central Grove. His life leaves behind something that cannot be measured by possessions or accomplishments alone. It can be seen in his sons, his grandchildren, in the skills and values he passed down, and in the stories his family will continue telling for generations.

Funeral services will be held at 2:00pm on August 20th, 2026, at E.E. Pickle Funeral Home, with Bro. Dennis Smithey Officiating. Visitation will be held from 12:00 until the service hour. Burial will be at a later date at Haughton Memorial Park. Pallbearers will be Jack Buchanan, Jackson Edwards, Keegan Walls, Bryce Walls, Jonah Walls, Elijah Walls, Connor Wall, and Kaulder Buchanan. 

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