Darrell Berry, 83

Darrell Berry passed away on December 14, 2025, at home with his wife and daughter by his side. Darrell was born to late Gilbert and Essie Berry in White City, Kentucky, in a coal company town, on August 31, 1942.  He married Linda Valentine Berry on July 24, 1964.  Darrell was preceded in death by his siblings, Lloyd (Muriel) Berry, Curtis Berry, LouEllen Berry, Pearl Berry, and Martha (Jimmie) Moore; his mother and father-in-law, Bill and Marlene Taliaferro, whom he loved like his own; and brother-in-law, Ernie Canler.

He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Linda Berry; his daughter, Paula Berry; and his cat, Henry, as well as a large extended family and friends.

It is difficult to sum up the life of someone you love; it doesn’t seem like they accomplished a great deal on paper. He lived his life in Mortons Gap and passed away less than 2 miles from where he was born, but he was the world to Mom and me.  Darrell was a retired coal miner who worked at several mines throughout the years, including Peabody Star North, where his nickname was from his CB Handle from the 1970s, “Bounty Hunter.” He also worked at Green River Coal and Retiki, where his nickname was “Poppa Smurf”, and at KenAmerican where he was just “Pops”.  Darrell was a lot of fun to be around.  My Daddy loved country music and gospel music, and if you were around him, you would hear him singing. He was a crazy UK Basketball fan, and he loved the Atlanta Braves and Bass Fishing.  A young man he used to fish with told my mom she needed to put just one more cast on his headstone, because when it was time to load the boat and go home, he would say Just one more cast.  He loved every holiday and would try to make them special, but he was a real-life Clark Griswald.  Christmas was his favorite time of year, and anyone who saw our house knew it. Decorating mishaps were as epic as the ones Clark Griswald had. My dad was all about being a girl dad and was involved in anything I was doing.  He was a devoted and loving husband and father. He will be greatly missed, and the only peace my mom and I have is that there is a wonderful reunion of loved ones and friends happening in Heaven even as I type this out, and through the grace of Jesus Christ, I know that one day, my mom and I will be able to join the fun.

A home-going celebration will be held at Bandy Funeral Home, Nortonville, Kentucky, on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, with visitation from 11:00 a.m. until the funeral at 1:00 p.m.  Burial to follow at Salem Cemetery in Morton’s Gap.

Pallbearers are Greg Taliaferro, Brian Taliaferro, Eric Canler, Kevin Pennington, Brad Fowler, and Jeffery Starks.

Honorary Pallbearers are Brad Taliaferro, Bob Taliaferro, Denny Pearson, Tabby Pearson, and David Knight.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Darrell Wayne Berry, please visit our floral store.