Irvin Lacy Gentry

Mr. Irvin Lacy Gentry, 84, of Mt. Airy, widower of Frances Edwards Gentry, passed away Thursday, March 1, 2007, at Village Care in King. Mr. Gentry was born in Surry County, December 17, 1922, to Garl L. and Alpha Lawrence Gentry. After graduating from Mt. Airy High School in 1940, he worked for the State Highway Commission and the U.S. Tennessee Valley Authority. He served three years in the United States Army in North Africa, Hawaiian Islands, and Okinawa in the Corp of Engineers and was the recipient of a Purple Heart. After his military service, he worked for the U.S. Army Corp of Engineering in Kentucky. He attended Appalachian State Teachers College and graduated from the University of Tennessee with a B.S. in Civil Engineering. He was registered in North Carolina as a Registered Land Surveyor in 1950 and as a Professional Engineer in 1963. He was retired from the City of Mt. Airy as an engineer and was a member of First Baptist Church. He loved gardening, bird hunting, and was a strong supporter and leader of Boy Scout Troop 538. Surviving are a brother and sister-in-law, Garl L. Gentry, Jr. and Patrician of Glaucester, VA; several nieces and nephews, including members of the Walter Edwards family; best friends, Otis Jones, Paul Beasley, and Robert Strickland, all of Mt. Airy; and confidantes, Carl Bell and John Haynes. Funeral services will be held at 2:00 PM Monday, March 5, 2007, at Moody Funeral Home Chapel in Mt. Airy, conducted by Dr. Roger Gilbert. Burial will follow in Oakdale Cemetery, with military honors by VFW Memorial Honor Guard Post 2019 of Mt. Airy and Pilot Mountain Post 9436. The family will receive friends Monday from 1:00 until the time of the service at the funeral home. Flowers will be accepted, or memorials may be made to St. Jude's Children's Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105-1942, or to Boy Scout Troop 538, c/o First Baptist Church, 714 North Main Street, Mt. Airy, NC 27030.