Larry Gene Catlin

A private family memorial service will be held for Larry Catlin, 75, in Kansas City, MO.  Larry Gene Catlin was born May 29, 1946, in Manhattan, KS to the home of Betty Jean (Lambert) and Bruce Ray Catlin, and died Sept. 8, 2021 in Portales, NM where he had been living for the past several years.

Larry graduated from high school in Buffalo, MO, and attended the College of the Ozarks for a brief time.  It was there that he met Ruth Garnetta Byrd.  Larry left school to enlist in the US Army, and served in Vietnam in Arial Reconnaissance.  While on a run, he located a large enemy ammunitions storage site, and gave the coordinates for a strike.  That earned him the Distinguished Flying Cross as well as an Air Medal.  Upon his safe return, he was married to Ruth Byrd on Nov. 5, 1966.  Following his discharge from the Army in 1968, he became a Highway Patrol Officer for the State of Missouri.  Later he became a driver for the Greyhound Bus Co.  While living in Colby, MO he attended Colby Community College in the daytime and worked as a janitor for the schools in the evenings.  He eventually earned a degree in Animal Husbandry.  He returned to bus driving, this time for Trailways.  For about a year he worked again in law enforcement for the Highway Patrol in WY, and then in 1980, he moved back to Kansas City where he again worked as a bus driver.  Larry eventually gained a CDL, and began doing long haul truck driving.  Through the years he had amassed more than 3 million miles of safe driving record.  His wife preceded him in death in 2004, and a few years later he moved to Portales.  For the past several years he had been an active member of the Third and Kilgore Church of Christ and was very involved in the Jail Ministry there.  Larry was a very friendly and outgoing man, and was always ready to help any way that he could.

He is survived by his son and daughter-in-law, James and Rochelle Catlin of Kansas City, MO; two daughters and a son-in-law, Ann and marc Govier and Rebecca Catlin also of Kansas city, MO; 1 grandson; three brothers, Charles Catlin of Columbia, MO, Doug Catlin of Stoutland, MO and Les Catlin of Overland Park, KS; and a sister, Aleene Alspaugh of MO.  In addition to his wife, he was preceded in death by his parents and three brothers Ray, Robert and Dewey Catlin.

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