Larry "Joe" Manley

Larry Joe Manley, 70 years old, died on Sunday, Feb. 28. at Mercy Hospital in Rogers, Ark. after a brief illness. He passed away with his children and wife by his side not far from his home in Springdale. He is survived by his wife, Delores; his children, Joe (Sheralee) Manley, Jon (Jacque) Manley, Rita Welch and Eric Bewley. He is also survived by eleven grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, as well as many loving friends. He is preceded in death by his parents and sisters, Barb Johnson and Marsha Stevens. Joe was born on Sept. 6, 1945 to Jack and Jeannie Manley in Red Wing, Minnesota. He grew up with his three sisters in Cannon Falls on his family's farm and ranch. He spent a large portion of his childhood assisting his father breaking horses and competing in rodeos. He joined the U.S. Navy when he was 17 years old and served for 30 years as an aviation ordnanceman, often times touring on aircraft carriers for months at a time. He served in the Vietnam conflict for four tours of duty and later traveled to places like the Philippines, Australia and the Middle East. He retired as a Lieutenant Commander in Fallon, Nev.V where he lived for 20 years. Larry Joe married the love of his life, Delores, on Oct. 7, 1995 in Fallon. After his retirement from the Navy, he took his bride back to her hometown in Arkansas where they built their dream home. From a young age, he had a deep passion for cars and motorcycles — both driving and working on them. He spent much of his time in the shop, rebuilding hot rods and listening to 50's rock n' roll. He was an avid member of local car clubs — Hurricams when he lived in Nevada and Heartbeat of the Ozarks in Arkansas. He enjoyed showing off his talents at local car shows with fellow enthusiasts and often traveled quite a distance for the shows as well. He was also very active in the Association of Aviation Ordnancemen and loved the comradery of his fellow shipmates. He spent the remainder of his time with his family and friends. He adored his grandchildren and loved being a grandfather. Funeral services will be at 1 p.m. at Backstrom-Pyeatte Funeral Home on Friday, March 4. Visitation will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday, March 3. In lieu of flowers, the family would like donations to be made to Wounded Warrior project. Donation instructions can be found at their website http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org.