Larry J. Merrill

Larry J. Merrill LUBBOCK-Larry J. Merrill died Tuesday, April 19, 2016. We will gather for fellowship and remembrance from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. this evening, April 21, 2016, at Lake Ridge Chapel and Memorial Designers. Family and friends will gather to celebrate his life of 74 years on Friday, April 22, 2016, at 1:30 p.m. at LakeRidge Baptist Church. Graveside services will be at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 23, 2016, in the Eakly Cemetery, Eakly, Okla. A tribute of Larry's life may be found at www.memorialdesigners.net, where you may leave memories and expressions of sympathy for his family. He was born July 16, 1941, in Cordell, Okla., the fourth of five boys born to Eben and Opal Merrill. His family moved from Cordell to Dallas, Texas, when his father left farming in Washita County, Okla., when he was called to the ministry. The family moved to DeKalb, Texas, and later to Arp, Texas, where Larry graduated from Arp High School. He graduated from East Texas State University, where he earned a Master's degree in Education. He served in the US Army from 1965 to 1967 and served in Korea. He taught high school in Garland, Texas. Larry had a love for students and especially those who were discounted. He coached many students in athletics. He and Emily Larson were married in Garland on Dec. 20, 1975, and their two children were born in Oklahoma. Larry taught history and also served as the high school principal in Eakly, Okla. The family moved to Lubbock in 1988. Larry accepted Christ as his Savior as a young boy in Dallas, and he remained committed to serving the Lord wherever he lived. Despite his worsening health decline, he remained confident in God's provision. His kind and gentle spirit was a comfort to all who knew him. He was preceded in death by his parents, Eben and Opal Merrill; and three brothers, Gailon, Arvin, and Durwood. Survivors include his wife, Emily; son and daughter-in-law, Royal and Amanda Merrill of Columbus, Ga.; his daughter and son-in-law, Rachel and Joshua Allen of Lubbock; brother and sister-in-law, Ted and Glenda Merrill; Carolyn Merrill, sister-in-law; his granddaughter, Aniston Merrill, and many other relatives, nieces and nephews. Memorials are suggested to Texas Tech University Health Science Center School of Nursing, Norton Endowed Scholarship Fund, 3601 4th Street, Lubbock, TX 79430 or to LakeRidge Baptist Church Youth, 4601 82nd Street, Lubbock, Texas 79424, in memory of Larry.