William Robert "Bob" Clifton, 78, a resident of Fayette County since the late 1950s, died May 22, 2007. He was born March 6, 1929 in Marion County, Ill., the only son of the late G. Cecil and Opal Eddings Clifton. He was also preceded in death by a sister, Kathleen. He was a retired Delta Air Lines captain, former owner and developer of The Links Golf Course in Fayette County, and served on the Fayetteville City Council for eight years. He was an entrepreneur, a philanthropist, a teacher, and an investor in oil fields. He was a member of the Fayette Presbyterian Church. He had requested that his body be donated to Emory University School of Medicine for research. Memorial services were at the Carl J. Mowell chapel.

Survivors include his wife of 56 years, Norma Lee Clifton; sons, Jon William Clifton, Florida, Jeffrey Paul Clifton, and Gregory Cecil Clifton, both of Fayetteville; a daughter, Connie Lee Clifton-Peacock, Newnan; a ward, Jeannie Weller Cooper, Florida, for whom he had legal guardianship and whom he had raised; a sister, Helen Clifton Blakeslee, Indiana; 12 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. Memorial donations may be given to the Fayette Senior Services for a heated swimming pool. Carl J. Mowell & Son Funeral Home, Fayetteville, was in charge of local arrangements.