Garnett Eugene Dodson

Family and friends are celebrating the life of Garnett Eugene Dodson of Hazen, who passed away on March 7, 2025, at age 85.

Born on March 20, 1939, Garnett was the second child of Kavanaugh and Vannoy Dodson of DeValls Bluff, Arkansas.

A lifelong resident of Prairie County, he married his sweetheart, Lana Jo Lloyd, in 1963. He and Lana had two daughters, Tracy (Scott) Maple of Wye and Kari (Troy) Sayger of Hazen. All three survive to celebrate his legacy. Garnett is also survived by several grandchildren and their significant others:

•             Chelsea Jo Hancock of Benton

•             Shelby Jo Hancock and fiancé Preston Clingmon, Benton

•             Tyler (Matheus) Maple of Evans, GA

•             Kyle Maple and fiancée Sarah Morgan of Greenville, NC

•             Ryleigh Maple of Wye

•             Whitney Sayger of Biscoe

He was also eagerly awaiting the birth of his and Lana’s first great-grandchild, Oaklynn Clingmon, due in May. Other survivors include his sister, Debbie Kearby of DeValls Bluff and four nephews: Kavan (Michelle) Dodson, Keith (Lori) Dodson, Kirk Dodson, and Michael (Amanda) Kearby. Preceding Garnett in death are his parents as well as brothers Royal, Kavanaugh (“Butch”) and infant Carl Raymond Dodson.

A graduate of DeValls Bluff High School, Garnett served as a field artillery guardsman for the National Guard before being federally mobilized for the Central High crisis of 1957. He joined Remington Arms in Lonoke, working as a mechanic and planning supervisor before retiring as a boiler operator and waste management specialist in 2002 after more than three decades.

He loved spending his off time with his family, watching the girls ride go-carts and four-wheelers and taking them to hunt deer at his “Honey Creek Hilton” lodge off Idlewild Road. When his girls were young, he would attend their dance recitals and pageants and teach Tracy to ski on the White River at DeValls Bluff. He spent many years growing an enviable garden of corn, okra, tomatoes, green beans, squash and peas.

Garnett and Lana traveled to Las Vegas, New Orleans, Canada and the Pacific Northwest with close friends Ralph (now deceased) and Mary Alexander Causby. For their 25th wedding anniversary, they visited Hawaii and took an aerial tour of the islands.

In December 2005, Garnett suffered a debilitating stroke that left him paralyzed on his left side. The disability slowed him down, but it did not deter him from continuing to maintain his tractors and find innovative new ways to get chores done such as changing a tire with one good arm. He never met a stranger and kept visitors entertained with tales from his youth and his job at Remington.

He will be dearly missed.

A visitation will be Monday, March 10, 2025 beginning at 1:00 PM with a funeral service to follow beginning at 2:00 PM at the First United Methodist Church in Hazen, Arkansas. Interment immediately following in the Pepper’s Lake Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers memorials can be made to the First United Methodist Church P. O. Box 712, Hazen, AR or the Pepper’s Lake Cemetery of DeValls Bluff, Arkansas.