Donald Rex "Don" Pohnert

Donald Rex “Don” Pohnert, 77, of White Deer, died Friday, Nov. 20, 2015 in Amarillo. Services will be at 10:30 AM Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2015, at the United Methodist Church in White Deer with Rev. Dr. Jerry R. Lane, pastor, officiating. Graveside services will be at 2:30 PM at Miami Cemetery in Miami. Arrangements are by Carmichael-Whatley Funeral Directors of Pampa. Don was born Feb. 5, 1938 in Mammoth Springs, Arkansas to Ben and Lorene Pohnert. He was a 1956 graduate of Thayer High School in Thayer, Missouri where he played football, basketball, baseball, and track. In 1955, his teams went to state in football and basketball. He was a 1960 graduate of the University of Missouri at Columbia with a B. S. degree in animal husbandry. Don came to the Texas Panhandle in 1960 where he worked for the Miami Cattle Co. In 1960, he served in the National Guard for six months at Fort Hood, Texas. He married Sammie Jo Bowers on July 30, 1961 in Shamrock. They moved to White Deer that year where he continued to work for Miami Cattle Co. on the Crutchfield Ranch for several years. In the 1970’s, Don was employed by K & K of White Deer, Getty Oil, and he retired from Celanese Chemical Co. in Pampa in 1998 after 24 years of service. Don was a member of the United Methodist Church of White Deer and the White Deer Riding Club. He enjoyed raising show pigs and AQHA horses for over 20 years. He had a love for helping FFA and 4-H students and was named an honorary Lone Star Farmer by the FFA in 1985. He was a kind, gentle man whose biggest treasures were his love for his family and his many wonderful friends. His proudest moments revolved around his grandson, Lane, and his granddaughter, Jordan. Survivors include his wife of 54 years, Sammie Jo, of the home; two sons, Dudley Rex Pohnert and wife Cindy of White Deer and James David “Jamie” Pohnert and wife Kirsten of Amarillo; a daughter, D’Lisa Dawn Flemming and husband Bill of Amarillo; a sister, Dolly Jewel, of Cape Girardeau, Missouri; four grandchildren, Lane and Jordan Pohnert, both of White Deer, and Sina and Sidney Flemming, both of Amarillo; and a niece, Deidre Farless, of Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Don was preceded in death by his parents, Ben and Lorene, his in-laws, Sam and Esther Bowers, and a brother-in-law, Don Jewel. Memorials may be made to the Don & Sybil Harrington Cancer Foundation to benefit BSA Hospice patients, 1600 Wallace Blvd., Amarillo, TX 79106 or United Methodist Church, P. O. Box 835, White Deer, TX 79097-0835. The family will receive friends from 6:00-7:30 Monday at Carmichael-Whatley Funeral Home.