Harry Myers

Services: 2:30 pm Sunday, November 27, 2022, Harperville Baptist Church

Visitation:  1:30pm Sunday, November 27, 2022, Harperville Baptist Church

Interment will follow the service in the Harperville Cemetery

Harry Eugene “Gene” Myers was born July 12, 1930 in Madden, Mississippi to Robert Clifton Myers and Bessie Hardage Myers. He graduated from Madden High School and, following a year at Mississippi State College, he transferred to Mississippi Southern College and received a B.S. degree in 1952. He was a founding member of Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity.

He served in the National Guard and the U. S. Marine Corps Reserve, from which he was honorably discharged in 1957. Following graduation, he took a job with Delta Exploration Oil Co., working in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, and then was sent to Trinidad where he worked 2 years.

Returning in 1957, he married Eula Anne Cochran, moved to the Cochran farm near Harperville and joined his father-in-law in the farming and ginning business, which became Cochran and Myers. After completing studies at Murdoch’s Cotton School in Memphis, Tennessee, he began cotton buying for the gins in Forest and Harperville. In addition to his work in the cotton producing, ginning, buying and selling, he began developing pastureland, digging ponds, building fences, and planting hay crops as he expanded into cattle production. He was a skilled horseman. He entered the poultry business in 1963 with a hatching egg farm and expanded into broiler production after the egg farm burned.

In 1968 Gene went to work as a Field Representative with the Mississippi Dept. of Revenue, a job he loved, for in those days before internet, he worked in the field, making regular calls on taxpayers in his assigned district. He rose early overseeing the farm work before starting his day job with the tax commission, then returning to the farm in the late afternoon. Cotton season brought late hours at the cotton gin.

He still found time to participate in the Forest Bass Club, the Shrine Motorcycle Corps and to enjoy water skiing and fishing from his cabin on the Ross Barnett Reservoir. He was active as a Steward in the Harperville Methodist Church, later moving his membership to the Harperville Baptist Church.

Gene was well known for his work ethic, which he sought to instill in his two sons, Harry Gene, who was born in 1959 and Mickey Wayne born in in 1961. Thy were brought up working on the farm and gin from an early age. The boys extended the family as Harry married Donna Trotman, who had a young son, Landon Bradford, and Mickey married Melody Hope Smith, who later gave birth to a granddaughter, Mickenzie Ann Myers.

Following retirement, Gene and Eula moved to Gulf Shores, Alabama where he equipped himself with boats for fishing, shrimping and crabbing and traveling in the Gulf of Mexico, exploring islands and visiting harbors. He and his wife traveled extensively, visiting most the states, including Alaska, and much of Canada and Mexico. They took their young granddaughter to Florida many times exploring most of the parks and vacation areas.

Gene continued to enjoy his farm where he maintained a fishing, hunting lodge. In Gulf Shores he was an active member of the Roger Riggs Sunday School Class and an associate member of a newly formed community church, St. Andrew by the Sea, while still maintaining his membership at Harperville Baptist, where he found a welcome church home when he returned to the farm after 20 years.

In 2010 he and Eula Anne returned to live out their lives in the lodge on the farm, enjoying their family, playing with their dogs, and appreciating the blessings of their heavenly father.

He was preceded in death by his parents, and a brother Dr. Bill Myers.

Pallbearers are Mark Gaddis, Steve Myers, Billy Price, Marvin Roberts, Dr. Ron Russell, Bryon Rushing, and Landon Bradford.  Honorary pallbearers are Randy Cahoon, Johnny Hill, Marshall Lewis, and Thomas Warnock.

Ott & Lee Funeral Home of Forest is honored to serve the family of Mr. Harry Eugene Myers.