Oscar Lamar Hicks, affectionately known as “Bud,” was born on May 29, 1931, in Five Points, Alabama, to William and Essie Hicks. He graduated from Selma University High School in Selma, Alabama. While in high school, Bud worked at the Chronicle Newspaper, running the printing press. During his junior and senior year, he was most proud of raising a grand prize-winning steer for the 4H Club (Future Farmers of America). Bud’s commencement speech was titled, “Facing the Future with the Program of Faith.”

At an early age, Bud accepted Christ as his personal savior and joined West Trinity Baptist Church in Selma, Alabama.  Later, he became a faithful member of Confirmed Word Faith Center in Cleveland, Ohio pastored by his sister the late Roberta Vines “Ginny”.  He joined Zion Chapel Missionary Baptist Church in 2016 and became a part of the Deacon Ministry in 2017 serving as a dedicated and faithful Deacon.

Bud moved to Cleveland, Ohio, in 1951 and was employed at Marshall Drug for a short time and after asking for a raise and being denied, he gave his two week notice without having another job lined up. Realizing that he had messed up, this became a life lesson that he shared often, to never leave a job without having another one. He eventually obtained employment with White Motors. While there, Bud wanted to start his own business, a service station, so he requested a leave of absence but was denied. He left White Motors after nine years and obtained his mechanics certificate of completion at East Technical High School. In 1960, he opened his service station and repair shop, “Hamm’s American Amoco Station,” on Lee Road in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1966, he started at TRW Valve Division as an automated machinist and remained there until his retirement in 1997.

On November 7, 1953, he married Myrtle Hamm and to this union, two children were born: Loretta Hicks “Bunny” and Arthur Lamar Hicks “King”.  Although the marriage ended, their close bond and friendship remained until Myrt’s death on June 8, 2008.

In August 1974, Bud met Gloria Jean Taylor and unknown to him at the time, she would become his best friend and love of his life. On December 2, 1989, they were united in holy matrimony and remained happily married until his death.  Bud and Jean were together for 50 years, and you rarely saw one without the other. During his retirement, they traveled, bowled, and rode his Harley until his health started to fail in 2014. Jean dedicated her life to loving and caring for him through sickness and health, never wavering or complaining.  To her, he was her “everything.”

Bud was an avid bowler and reached the ever-elusive Club 300 twice in his lifetime. In 1957 he bowled a perfect game, and then did it again in 1979.  He was also a motorcycle man and owned two Harley-Davidson motorcycles, one best known as “Brown Sugar”.  Back in the day, he was a member and the treasurer for the Mystic Knights Motorcycle Club.  Bud stayed busy working with his hands, fixing things and landscaping.  He was an excellent mechanic and spent hours working on cars.  Bud was a man of many talents and everything he did was meticulously done.  He loved and took great pride in his family and made sure to impart his wisdom with the intention of leaving a legacy that would last through the generations.

Bud was preceded in death by his parents, William G. and Essie Todd Hicks, brothers, Clifford Hicks, Sr., and William G. Hicks “Red”; sisters, Emma B. Nolan, Annie Ruth Washington, and Roberta Vines “Ginny”; sister-in-law, Alberta Wilson; brother-in-law, Thomas Taylor.

On March 18, 2023, under the care of his loving wife, Bud went from labor to rest.  He leaves to forever celebrate and cherish his life: wife, Gloria Jean; son, Arthur Lamar Hicks Sr. “King” (Cherie); daughters, Loretta Hicks “Bunny,” and  Shantel Taylor-Daam (Kabik); granddaughters, Arneisha Robinson (Larnell), Tiara Salmon (Germaine), and Kennedi McDonald; grandsons, Arthur Lamar Hicks Jr. “AJ”(Sarah), Myles Z. Taylor-Hicks, Darian J. Hicks, Kenneth McDonald; great-grandsons, Marquise Robinson-Allen, Michael Fowler, Larnell Butler, Jr. “Legend”, Gavin Salmon and Arthur Lamar Hicks III “Tre”; great-granddaughters, Mariah Davis and Avery Salmon; brother, Eugene Todd Hicks; sister, Josephine C. Smith (Douglas); two sisters-in-law, Lula Tate and Fannie Cockrell; a host of nieces, nephews cousins, friends, and his Zion Chapel Missionary Baptist Church family, all of whom he dearly loved.