CURTIS B. BARRETT

Curtis B. Barrett, age 88, of Mt. Vernon, Missouri passed away on Friday, May 19, 2023 in Joplin, Missouri. He was born on September 7, 1934 on a rural family farm on the Barry-Lawrence County line in Missouri, the son of Ervis and Hazel (Harris) Barrett.
In January 1952, he married Carmaletta Mae Tunnell.
Curtis was an adventurous kid who hopped trains and rode across the country and back by the time he was 11 years old. He finished his formal education by the eighth grade, and worked various jobs during his younger years. He worked as a shoe shine boy who shined shoes during World War II, as a pin setter at the Aurora Bowling Alley, as a janitor at the Princess Theatre, and as an employee of the Aurora shoe factory.
Curtis began a 40 year career as a baker working at the A&P Bakery in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and then as the owner of Chandler Bakery in Kansas City, Missouri, where he strived to become the number one Italian bakery in the region. He completed his baking career as owner of the Food Fair Bakery in Mt. Vernon, Missouri.
He also worked as a television repairman, a bail bondsman, the inventor of a home and business alarm system, a bee keeper, a school bus driver, a heating and air repair man, head of maintenance at the Methodist Manor in Marionville, and an OATS bus driver.
He held a HAM radio license since the early 60s and would talk to people from all over the world, including a Prince in Saudi Arabia. At the young age of 65, he learned to ride a motorcycle and bought a Honda Goldwing. He rode it to California and back to visit his son. He enjoyed riding into his 80s. Throughout his life he was heavily involved in Republican politics and served on the Lawrence County Central Committee for many years.
Family was very important to him. He helped coordinate large family reunions. Family gathered at his home for holidays and for other special occasions, and often just because. The lessons that we have learned from him we hold dear and will pass them down to future generations. Curtis strongly believed in God and always looked forward to be reunited with loved ones.
Curtis is survived by a brother, Tommy Barrett and wife Ann, of Kansas City, Mo.; sister, Ruth Potter, of Mt. Vernon, Mo.; son Austin Barrett and wife Edna, of Yucaipa, Calif.; daughter Loraine Tillman of Mt. Vernon, Mo.; son Arthur Barrett, and his wife Dee, of Mt. Vernon, Mo.; and daughter Cara Strong and her husband Cliff, of Mt. Vernon, Mo.; eight grandchildren, CW Tillman, Candace Meyer, Travis Barrett, Clayton Strong, Christopher Strong, Chase Strong, Ericson Canlas, and Rommel Canlas; and six great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Ervis and Hazel; wife, Carmaletta (Tunnell); a sister, Elma Pearl Barrett; and brothers, Jesse Thomas Barrett and Homer Doyle Barrett; and great-grandson, Jacob Meyer.
A funeral service under the direction of the Peterson Funeral Chapel, in Aurora, Mo., will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 3, 2023, at the funeral home chapel. Burial will follow in the Maple Park Cemetery. Visitation will be held from 6:00-8:00 p.m. on Friday, June 2, 2023, in the funeral home chapel.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made payable to the American Heart Association or the American Cancer Society, in care of the funeral home.

Category:

Lawrence County Record

312 S. Hickory St.
Mt. Vernon, MO, 65712
www.lawrencecountyrecord.com

Facebook

Please Login for Premium Content