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Services for Gayle A. Fry were at 12 p.m. at Robert Barham Family Funeral Home Mon., March 14, 2016.
Burial was at Mississippi Veterans Cemetery with full honors.
Lieutenant Commander Gayle A. Fry, USN ret., entered into eternal peace Sun., Mar. 6, 2016, surrounded with love and family at his home in Marion, Miss.
Gayle was born October of 1927 in Texhoma, Okla., the son of George Francis Fry and Pearl Marie Johnson. In 1935, the family moved to Hennessey, where he attended Myrtle Grade School, and graduated from Hennessey High School in 1946.
He was then selected to join a special Naval Program, "The Flying Midshipmen," the Naval aviator training program developed near the end of World War II. After completing initial pilot training, he attended the University of Oklahoma and the University of New Mexico, graduating with a Bachelor's degree in geology. He then attended Naval Post-Graduate School in Monterey, Calif. He was then stationed in Pensacola, Fla., where he received his commission in February of 1950. He married Dorothy Turner of Hennessey Nov. 15, 1949. Together they had one son, Steven Gayle Fry.
During his distinguished 30-year career, Commander Fry flew and served as a flight instructor in numerous single and multi-engine Naval aircraft, including the C-47. His assignments included flying patrols as a "Hurricane Hunter," estimating the size and velocity of hurricanes in the Florida Gulf area, and transporting military personnel and cargo in Newfoundland, Iceland, Turkey and many other countries.
After qualifying as an Aircraft Carrier pilot, Commander Fry served as the Gunnery Officer on the U.S.S. Ranger during 1961-1962, the base police chief, fire chief and acting Judge on NAS Midway Island between 1963-1964, and a pilot of transport aircraft in both Korea and Vietnam. He was also in charge of flying many USO celebrity entertainers, VIPS and dignitaries.
Completing his tour of Vietnam, Commander Fry was stationed at NAS Meridian, Miss., where he served as flight instructor alongside many distinguished aviators, including John McCain. He was named Admin Officer for a time before retiring from the Navy in 1970. While working as Admin. Officer at NAS Meridian, he met and married Serecho Rose "Pa" Kelley and settled in Marion, Miss.
He adopted his wife's two children from her previous marriage, Cynthia Marie Fry and Ward Brandon Fry. Together they had two children, Erin Michelle Fry and Serecho Rose Fry.
Upon retiring from active duty he worked to start the first Naval Junior ROTC program in Lauderdale County at Northeast Lauderdale High School. He taught Naval Science and touched the lives and changed the futures of countless young people until his retirement from the school system in 1989. During his time as a school teacher, he and his wife also owned and operated Aloha Printing Company in Marion, Miss., where he was an offset printer until he retired in 2015.
A veteran of World War II, Korea and Vietnam, Gayle was an amazing man and a true American hero and patriot. He spent most of his entire adult life proudly wearing the uniform of the United States Navy. As the grandson of historical Oklahoma "Sooners," a child of The Great Depression and Oklahoma farm boy, he went on to accomplish incredible things in life and was respected and loved by everyone who had the honor and privilege to know him. He will forever be loved and dearly missed.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Serecho Rose "Pat" Fry; son, Ward Brandon Fry; daughter, Cynthia Marie Anthony; his parents, George and Pearl Fry; brothers, Roy Fry and Bert Fry; sisters, Thelma Bratton and Nellie Shuford; and an infant grandson, Randall Gayle Heim.
He leaves his loving memories to be cherished by a son, Steven Gayle Fry; daughters, Michelle Porter and husband, Tony, of Decatur, and Lacy Heim and husband, James, of Marion; 11 grandchildren: Ember Fry of Marion, Brandon Cutway of Marion, Jessica Fry Partridge of Chunky, Jonathan Ward of Russell, Josh Heim of Salt Lake City, Utah, Adam Porter of Decatur, James Heim Jr. of Horne Lake, Logan Ward of Russell, Dillon Anthony of Philadelphia, Faith Heim of Marion, and Emily Heim of Marion; five great grandchildren; and a sister, Winnibel Holmes of Fredricksburg, Va.
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