Clyde LeBarron Odom, Sr.

Clyde LeBarron Odom, Sr, age 84, passed on to glory peacefully at his home in the arms of Christ, on October 4, 2012. Funeral services will be held at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 9, 2012 at Memory Chapel with burial to follow at Lake Park Hills in Laurel. He was the beloved husband of the late Dorothy Louise Moss. He is the father of Melissa Odom Hudson, Rebecca Odom Fertitta, Clyde LeBarron Odom,Jr., and Mark Lane Odom, grandfather of Angela Fertitta Rodriguez, Jonathan Fisher Hudson and Vincent Odom Fertitta and with great joy the great-grandfather of Sophia Sarah-Marie Rodriguez. He was the loving fiancee to Dorothy Kelly Lowe of Birmingham, Alabama. His brothers were the late William Harold Odom, and the late Charles L. Odom of Laurel. His surviving sister is Melissa Odom Ridgway of Laurel. What can we say about Clyde LeBarron Odom Sr.? He was a husband, a father, a healer, a teacher and a fisherman. He was kind and generous to all creatures great and small. As a Father he was a loving man and worked diligently all his life as a generous provider. He is one of the few men that we have known that truly loved his job. He graduated in 1954 from Texas A&M Veterinary College and practiced in Laurel and Anchorage Alaska. For both the family and the public, it was always fun to go to the clinic and watch him be Doc Odom. When we look at scripture we find, “Whatsoever you do unto the least of these, my brethren, you have done it unto me” and with a heart full of service, you could see our father. Who would let a client pay with watermelons for treating his cow? Doc Odom would! Who would, at 2:00 am, after delivering a calf, eat a big breakfast made by the homeowners, look up and say, “That’s enough payment for me!” Doc Odom would! Who treated Binky, the polar bear at the Anchorage Zoo and got attacked and lived? Doc Odom did! Who would let you come in the clinic without an appointment and have your pet treated that day? Doc Odom would with welcoming arms. Whose customers would come in with cakes, cookies, or maybe whole meals, to visit and share with Doc and his staff, just because…? Doc Odom’s clients did! He was a man that lived his dreams. He always loved to be around young people. He would say that they kept him young. I truly believe that they did. He changed the lives of many a young man and woman by simply being Doc. He was a master storyteller. In his stories--maybe about wrestling Binky (aka the polar bear), at the Anchorage Zoo, fishing, delivering a calf, or simply one of holding the paw of your beloved pet, his love went to all. He created the story of his life joyously. He was an active member of the Alaska Retriver Club. He loved training and working his Labradors. So much so, that he became known as the “ Labrador doctor”. Our Dad was and is our best friend. On November 3, 1979, Dad and our brother Mark came to know Jesus Christ as the best of best friends. Our father was a larger than life man and will be missed. The joy and love he left will stay present with us all. “There is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother .” The family requests that in lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to be made to the charity of your choice. Visitation will be held from 1:00 p.m. until service time on Tuesday, October 9, 2012 at Memory Chapel of Laurel which is in charge of the arrangements.

Clyde LeBarron Odom, Sr.

May 2, 1928 - October 4, 2012