Kermit Taze Lofton, Sr., age 85, passed peacefully from this life, Thursday, April 16, 2026, at Henderson Healthcare.

He was born May 9, 1940, in Adamsville, TN, the son of Taze Elmo Lofton and Verda Lee Whitten Lofton. The family moved to Millington, TN where he spent his younger years and attended Millington High School. He was a member of the Millington High School Marching Band. His senior year of high school, his family moved to Henderson, TN. He graduated from Chester County High School in 1958.

He attended Freed-Hardeman College for one year, where he was a member of the Griffin’s Men’s Tumbling Team. He transferred to Bethel College in 1961. He graduated in 1964 with a degree in Business Administration.

Also, while attending Bethel he met the love of his life, Nancy Karen Barnerd of Elizabethtown, IL. They were married on July 11, 1964, and made their home in Henderson, TN. They have two sons, Kermit Taze Lofton, Jr. (1966) and Spence Barnerd Lofton (1969).

Taze was an avid race car driver. He competed on various dirt tracks in West Tennessee driving a black B-car sporting the number #62. He went two full seasons without a loss in a feature race. He held the track record at various speedways, including Riverside Speedway in West Memphis, Arkansas. He was a crowd favorite and followed by many fans.

After graduating from college, he worked for Casey Funeral Home and at Goodyear as Credit Sales Manager. He also farmed on the family land. He then went into business with Anthony Bolton and opened Bolton-Lofton Used Cars. In 1972, Taze and Anthony purchased Stroud Chevrolet in Henderson. They bought the franchise, and it then became Bolton-Lofton Chevrolet.

In 1978 Taze became primary owner of the dealership, and the name was changed to Lofton Chevrolet, Inc. He retired from the dealership in 2008, leaving the business with his sons and General Manager, Ronnie Geary. Taze and the Lofton Chevrolet Family celebrated 50 years of business in 2022 and have been blessed with numerous wonderful loyal employees and customers.

After retiring, he returned to his love for farmland, working outdoors, and became interested in heavy equipment. Many days you could pass down the highway and see him on his backhoe or trackhoe moving dirt and cleaning his farm in Pinson in south Madison County.

Taze was honored to receive the Volunteer of the Year 2006-07 Award from Freed-Hardeman University. He was a member of the Freed-Hardeman University Development Council and the President’s Council.

He had a lifetime love of cars and racing. He was a collector of antique cars, especially the ’63-“67 Corvette. He was a passionate NASCAR fan, traveling to numerous tracks across the U.S. to cheer on his favorite man in black, Dale Earnhardt. He also enjoyed golfing and was a member of the Woodland Hills Golf and Country Club. He and Nancy enjoyed international traveling with the GM cooperation, and RV camping with their fellow NASCAR friend traveling crew. He enjoyed boating and spending time at the family lake house at Pine Lake.

He was a member of the Henderson Church of Christ.

Taze is survived by his wife of 61 years, Nancy, sons Kermit (Debbie) of Henderson, Spence (Julia) of Henderson; grandchildren Drew Lofton, Alex Lofton, Spencer Lofton, and Paige Lofton; and a sister Nona Lofton Seaton (Dwain) of Henderson.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Elmo Lofton & Verda Lofton, brothers Larry Lofton and Leon Lofton, and nephew Leon Lofton, Jr.

Funeral services will be 2:00 p.m. Monday, April 20, 2026, at Shackelford Funeral Directors- Crook Avenue with Ben Flatt, Ronnie Geary, and Billy Smith officiating. Burial will follow at Henderson City Cemetery with Ken Frye officiating.

The family will receive friends at Crook Avenue 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 19. They will receive friends as well from 12:00 p.m. until 2:00 p.m. service time on Monday.