Obituary of Daniel Wayne Skelton

Manchester, Tennessee - Daniel Wayne Skelton, 53, of Manchester, TN died on Monday, May 2, 2022. He grew up in Manchester and graduated from Coffee County High School in 1986. He has one daughter, Malory Shay Woodside (Austin Woodside) of Manchester. He is the son of Judy Wayne and Danny Skelton of Manchester. He is also survived by his sisters Dawn Hafer (Craig Hafer), Christine Smith, nephews Chad Hafer, Colter Smith, and friend and companion Joy Murphy and dog Maggie. Danny was well educated in his field, having gotten training at a Technical School in Electronics Course in Pretoria, South Africa in 1988, Hobart training course in stainless, carbon steel and aluminum welding. He also spent time in the United States Navy from 1986-1988. He became an ironworker and worked for about 15 years with Misc Metal Works and other fabrication companies. Ironworking was his main trade but he was also a good heavy equipment operator and carpenter. Some of the companies he worked for included: Sverdrup Technology Inc. 1991-1992; ACME Mechanical Tank Fabrication; Columbia Tee Tank; K&S Steel, and; MCA Sign Company. He was working as a carpenter for Jeff Lowe and James Finchum on his last job. He enjoyed hunting, especially turkey hunting, and was a good fisherman. Danny Wayne became a Christian at First Baptist Church when he was a junior boy. One Sunday during Communion, before he joined the church, he snatched a serving of grape juice from the tray as it passed in front of him before anyone could stop him. Several members near us laughed…one I remember was Blanch Young. When Danny Wayne was about 10 years old he spent one summer with me in Algeria on an oil line pumping station project that ran from the terminal in Skikda, Algeria to the oil field in Touggourt. On the way home from North Africa we travelled through Paris, Amsterdam, and Norway where we visited the real Viking’s museum. Later in a school class they were studying these places and he told the teacher he had been there and she did not believe him…he was so upset…but recovered. He was very good at making the best out of a bad situation. In the early 1980’s Danny Wayne, Judy Wayne, and I lived in Taiwan where he completed his junior year of high school at Morrison Academy (a missionary school). It was the best year of his high school education where he made some great friends. He also held the school high jumping record for a short period. In the late 1980’s he spent several months with me in South Africa where he went to a technical school and worked for Sverdrup Technology on a construction site in Pretoria. He also made many new friends at work, school and the Baptist Church we attended. We had some great times trout fishing and visiting the Kruger National Park (best wildlife game park in the world)…several times. Danny Wayne enjoyed meeting people and had a gift for making friends. What a friend he had in Jesus from a very early age. He was secure in his faith. We discussed it many times. He went through rehab 3 times but his faith never wavered. He truly believed that there is no condemnation to those who trust the Lord. He suffered from rheumatoid arthritis for many years but now is in a blessed paradise with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…Amen and Amen… Visitation with the family will be held on Saturday, May 7, 2022, from 12noon until 2:00pm at Central Funeral Home in Manchester, TN. Funeral services will be conducted immediately following visitation at 2:00pm in the chapel of Central Funeral Home with his father, Daniel T. Skelton officiating. Burial will follow at Rose Hill Memorial Gardens in Tullahoma, TN. In lieu of flowers, please make any donations of remembrance to the Arthritis Foundation or to First Baptist Church, Manchester, TN.