Theodore Blackmon Thaxton Sr., 87, a Middlesboro, Ky., resident and Suwanee, Ga., resident died Oct. 1 at Emory Johns Creek Hospital in Johns Creek, Ga., following an extended illness.He was a retired band director and teacher with the DeKalb County School System in Georgia, a U.S. Navy Korean war veteran, member of the Methodist Church and son of the late Jesse Benjamin and Inez Littlefield Thaxton, Sr. In addition to his parents he was preceded in death by son, Michael Paul Thaxton in 2014 and brother, William L. Thaxton in 2004. Mr. Thaxton moved to McMinnville in 1943 and attended Central High School where he played football and was in the band. He attended Tennessee Tech University on a football scholarship and after graduation began his teaching career of 35 years.