James Fryar

James Fryar, age 61, of Caddo Gap, passed away Tuesday, March 26, 2013. He was born on June 18, 1951, at Mena, the son of Burl Lee Fryar and Betty Lou Batson Fryar. On July 5, 1968, he was married to Gracie Gladys Porter. He was preceded in death by his father and his two sisters. He was an ordained Baptist minister; and was Fire Manager with the U.S. Forest Service until his retirement in July, 2011. Over the years, he was responsible for the training of many young men and Native American Fire Crews, while fighting countless dangerous forest fires himself; he loved and appreciated every minute of his career. An avid outdoorsman, he enjoyed fishing, hunting and traveling all throughout the United States. James was a wonderful and loving husband, father and grandfather who will be deeply missed by all those who had the privilege of having him in their lives and his memory will live on in each of their hearts. He is survived by his loving wife, Gladys Fryar of Caddo Gap; two daughters and sons-in-law, Ginger and Terry Avery of Caddo Gap and Jennifer and Matthew Mallard of Mound, Louisiana; three grandchildren, Rachel Avery of Caddo Gap, Evan Mallard of Mound, Louisiana and Owen Mallard of Mound, Louisiana; his "adopted" grandchildren, Brooklynn Boyette of Arkadelphia, Cody and Lily Johnson of Greenwood and Kayla Porter of Norman; his mother, Betty Fryar of Glenwood; three brothers, Jimmy Fryar of Mount Ida, Allen Fryar of Damascus and Burl Fryar, Jr. of Hot Springs; numerous nieces and nephews; and a host of loving friends. Services will be held at 10:00 AM, Friday, March 29, 2013, in the Davis-Smith Funeral Home Chapel in Glenwood with Bro. Tim Love officiating. Interment will be in the Fancy Hill Cemetery under the direction of Davis-Smith Funeral Home, Glenwood. Pallbearers will be Marty Reynolds, Jamie Cook, Tracy Nelson, Greg Harmon, Mike Price, Jr. and Lou Price. Honorary pallbearers will be Dr. Matthew Hulsey, his special hospice nurse, Tammy Shoremount, his many crew members and co-workers from the Ouachita National Forest, Bruce Price, James Doyle Price, Jimmy Ledbetter and Kelsey Porter. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the James Fryar Memorial Fund, for scholarships for his beloved grandchildren, c/o First National Bank, P.O. Box 770, Glenwood, Arkansas, 71934. Guest registry is at www.davis-smith.com.