William J. "Bill" Berry

William J. “Bill” Berry, 79, passed away on June 29, 2014 in Pampa. Services will be 10:00 AM Saturday, July 5, 2014, at Central Baptist Church with Bro. Norman Rushing, pastor, and Rev. Rick Parnell, associate pastor, officiating. Burial will follow in Fairview Cemetery under the direction of Carmichael-Whatley Funeral Directors. Mr. Berry, who chose to be called “Bill,” was born November 12, 1934 in Du Bois, Pennsylvania to Jessie Mae and William James Berry. He arrived second in a family of eleven. Bill and his family resided in the Du Bois area until he was 13. His father was a J.C. Penney Company manager and was transferred by Penny’s to Bluefield, West Virginia where Bill attended high school. After high school, Bill attended John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas from 1952 until 1956 when he completed a BS degree in agriculture. Upon graduation, he married his college sweetheart, Donna Girouard of Perryton. He had been a resident of Pampa for fifty-eight years. His first employment after college was with Frontier Perforators, an oilfield well completion service firm in Pampa, working from 1956 until 1966. In 1966, he and two others co-founded Titan Specialties Inc., where he served as vice president and president, until selling the business in 2006, and retiring in 2008. Bill worked fifty-two years designing, manufacturing and distributing products used in the oil and gas well completion process. During his career, Bill developed a great interest in leadership studies and read many books on the subject. He loved people and loved to see young people have the opportunity to equip themselves for life by pursuing higher educational opportunities. Bill was a Trustee of John Brown University and served on the JBU Development Committee from 1997 until June of 2012. He served as Development Committee chair from 2011 until June of 2012. He continued serving as Trustee Emeritus up until the time of his death. Bill loved this Christian university, and loved to see it grow and develop into the highly respected facility it is today. Locally, he served a term on the Pampa EDC, plus several years on the Pampa Industrial Foundation, He was a devoted husband, father and grandfather. Bill accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior when he was eleven, loved the Lord, and was active in church work throughout his life. This includes serving on church boards, teaching Sunday school classes, serving as Sunday school superintendent and singing with the senior’s choir at Central Baptist Church. He was preceded in death by his youngest sister, Barbara Jane Furrow, who passed away on October 20, 1987 at age 34, and his older sister, Dorothy Jean Howington, who passed away on July 31, 2008 at the age of 75. Survivors include his wife, Donna Berry of the home; two sons, William Todd Berry and wife Terri of Bakersfield, California, and Tyler Wayne Berry of Santiago, Chile; two grandsons, Scott Berry, and Ryan King; and eight siblings, Elizabeth Ann Nelson of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Kathryn Edith Gray of Bluefield, West Virginia, Margaret Louise Stafford of Princeton, West Virginia, Richard James Berry of Bland, Virginia, Charles Edward Berry of Bluefield, Virginia, David Robert Berry of Bastain, Virginia, Joseph Earl Berry of Bluefield, West Virginia, and Daniel Steven Berry of Richlands, Virginia. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to John Brown University, 2000 W. University Street, Siloam Springs, Arkansas 72761, Central Baptist Church, 513 E. Francis, Pampa, Texas 79065, or the Apostolic Faith College, P.O. Box 110, Baxter Springs, Kansas 66713. On Friday, July 4, 2014, the funeral home hours will be from 1:00-8:00 PM, and the family will receive friends from 6:00-8:00 PM.