Clarence "Buddy" Arrington, Jr.

Durham – Clarence “Buddy” Arrington, Jr., age 84, passed away on Friday, April 18, 2025.  Born in Nash County, NC on April 6, 1941, he was the son of the late Clarence Theodore Arrington, Sr. and Fannie Battle Arrington.  He was also preceded in death by his daughter, Ericka Arrington; his five brothers, William Arrington, Arthur Arrington, Fredrick Arrington, Joseph Arrington, and Eugene Arrington; and his two sisters, Ann Isbell and Lula Bell Macklin.

Clarence grew up on a share-cropper farm in Nash County with his seven siblings, and as the youngest sibling, he got away with a lot because of it.  He attended the public school system of Nash County, NC and graduated from high school in 1958.  After completing his general education, Clarence and his brothers, William and Fredrick, moved to New York City during the great migration to find a better life and escape the farm work of Eastern North Carolina.  He found employment in New York City and eventually lived a good life ending up on the upper west side of Manhattan.  Clarence enjoyed the NY lifestyle most of his younger adult years, hung out with a few affluent black New York celebrities and businesspeople and traveled various parts of the world.  He remained in New York for about 25 years until he decided to slow down and come back down south to North Carolina.

In the mid to late 1970s, Clarence returned to Durham and attended school to become a HVAC Technician, which turned into a career with a large commercial HVAC company, Comfort Mechanical Contractors, where he eventually became a supervisor.  Over his career, he supervised the installation of many large commercial HVAC systems for many large organizations such as The University of North Carolina, Duke University, GlaxoSmithKline and IBM.  Clarence stayed with Comfort Mechanical Contractors until his retirement.  He quietly resided on the east side of Durham NC until his death.

Clarence was a hard-working man who valued his privacy and lived life on his own terms.  He had a keen interest in politics and would discuss current events with anyone who was willing to partake and debate the issues.  You might not speak to Clarence for years but when you did speak with him, it was like you had seen him a few days ago, ergo the nickname “Buddy”.  He was a wonderful conversationalist and loved the art of having a good, long talk. He was well liked by all that knew him.  Buddy loved traveling, fishing and taking trips to the beach.  Although, he may have had a very straight forward personality at times, he was a jokester that had a strong love for life and an even stronger love for his family. Buddy leaves behind a legacy that will forever be remembered.

Buddy is survived by his two sons, Michael Artis (Dawn) and Steven Arrington (Jennifer); his daughter, Nina Arrington Jackson (James); his grandchildren, Eric Arrington, Kenneth Arrington, Jessica Arrington, Asa Arrington, Aiden Arrington, Savannah Elias, and Noah Jackson; his five great-grandchildren; and a host of other family and friends.

A Memorial Service to celebrate Buddy’s life will be held on Saturday, May 31, 2025, at 1:00 PM in the Chapel of Wheeler & Woodlief Funeral Home and Cremation Services, 1130 N. Winstead Ave., Rocky Mount, NC 27804, with Rev. Mark Sutton officiating.

Arrangements entrusted to Wheeler & Woodlief Funeral Home & Cremation Services, 1130 N. Winstead Avenue, Rocky Mount, NC 27804.  You may share memories and condolences with the family by visiting www.wheelerwoodlief.com.