Eleanor Hutchens Tyre

Eleanor Hutchens Tyre, 97, of Pampa, passed away October 23, 2018 in Pampa.

Services will be 2:00 PM Friday, October 26, 2018 at Zion Lutheran Church, with Rev. Michael Erickson, pastor, officiating.  Burial will follow in Memory Gardens Cemetery under the direction of Carmichael-Whatley Funeral Directors.

Mrs. Tyre was born September 23, 1921 in Reydon, Oklahoma.  She was a 1938 graduate of Pampa High School and attended West Texas A&M for two years.  In her second year, World War II had begun, and her mother encouraged her to help a friend by taking an exam (the examiner was being paid per individual).  Eleanor told her mother she thought the test was extremely simple. Several weeks later, she learned that by passing the test she was an employee of the Civil Aeronautics Administration (now the FAA).   She was required to report to the Fort Worth airport for six weeks of instruction in weather and communication with aircraft from control towers and radio stations.  There were fifteen women in her class, the very first class for women to relieve men for the military. 

She married Robert Tyre on April 26, 1946 in Hernando, Mississippi. He preceded her in death in 1991.  She worked as a traffic manager for Zern Industry in Kokomo, Indiana, retiring after 12 years of service.  Eleanor had been a resident of Pampa since 1975 and was a member of Zion Lutheran Church. She enjoyed oil painting, crocheting, and cooking.  She was a volunteer for Good Samaritan for many years and drove a school bus for several years.

Survivors include two daughters, Roberta Tyre Hite and husband Larry of Kokomo, Indiana, and Ellen Marie Tyre of Pampa; a brother, Lee Hutchens and wife Genny of Langhorne, Pennsylvania; four grandchildren, Lorelei Tyre-Ramirez, Vincent Ramirez, Rob Hite and Anna Walker; and ten great grandchildren.  Eleanor was preceded in death by two sisters, Marie Boyd and Lucille Smith; and two brothers, John Hutchens and Wayne Hutchens.

The family wishes to extend a special thanks to BSA Hospice of the Southwest for their care and compassion of Eleanor.

The family will receive friends from 6:00-7:30 PM Thursday, October 25, 2018, at Carmichael-Whatley Funeral Directors.