More detail on this person: Lometa Mayor and Municipal Judge Charles Michael McGarry Sr., 69,
died Oct. 25, 2007, at his residence after a long battle with cancer.
Funeral services are Nov. 1 at 2 p.m. at Church of the Hills in Lometa with the Rev. John Quigley
officiating. Burial will follow at Lometa City Cemetery.
Visitation is Oct. 31 from noon to 3 p.m. at Sneed Funeral Chapel in Lampasas.
Mr. McGarry was born in Streater, Ill., the son of James Gordon and Helen Burns McGarry. He was
reared in Los Angeles, Calif.
In 1958, Mr. McGarry began a 31-year military career with the U.S. Army at Fort Lee, Va., where he
met and after a subsequent tour of duty in Korea, married his wife of 45 years, the former Patricia
Anne Gowdy of Richmond, Va.
After an assignment to San Antonio, he entered basic helicopter training at Fort Wolters, Texas, and
in 1965, he completed training at Fort Rucker, Ala., and received his aviator wings and was
commissioned as a warrant officer one.
After graduation, Mr. McGarry served consecutive unaccompanied tours in Korea and Vietnam, returning
to Fort Wolters in 1967 as a chief warrant officer and instructor pilot.
In 1969, Mr. McGarry began another tour in Vietnam, and in 1970, he was reassigned to Fort Rucker as
senior tactical officer for the Army Helicopter School. From there, Mr. McGarry moved from aviation
to Army logistics and served consecutive tours at Homestead AFB., Fla., and later to logistical
assignments in Bad Kreuznach and Kaiserslautern, Germany.
In 1983, Mr. McGarry was assigned to Fort Hood as a member of the Inspector General Team where he
remained until December 1990, when he retired from active duty as chief warrant officer four.
During his military career, Mr. McGarry was awarded the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Air
Medal with Numeral 7, Army Com- mendation Medal with 2 Oak Leaf clusters, Good Conduct Medal,
National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal with one Silver and one Bronze Service Star,
Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon with Numeral 3, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal,
Master Army Aviator Badge and Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Palm.
After retirement, Mr. McGarry attended Central Texas College and Tarleton State University, earning
a bachelor's degree in criminal justice. He was inducted into the National Criminal Justice Honor
Society.
He moved to Lometa in December 1999, and was appointed to the Lometa City Council in 2001. In
2004, Mr. McGarry was named mayor pro tem and served with the council until 2005 when he assumed
duties as the mayor and municipal judge.
He was re-elected in 2006 and held both positions until earlier this month when he tendered
resignations based upon his health.
Mr. McGarry was a member of Lometa Lions Club, American Legion Post 116 and Carmichael Lodge
No. 548, A.F. & A.M., in Enterprise, Ala.
Survivors include his wife of Lometa; sons, Charles Jr. and wife, Monique, of Stockholm, Sweden,
James and wife, Memori, of Salado, Patrick and wife, Amanda, of Nolanville, and Chad Lyons, of
Austin; a daughter, Mary Hicks, and husband, Jimmy, of Bend; 11 grandchildren, Caitlyn, Robert,
Sara, John, Georgia, Kaitlyn, Charlie III, Maximillian, Catherine, Hayden and Ian; and a brother,
James McGarry and wife, Sandra, of Prescott, Ariz.
The family requested memorials be made to Odyssey Health Care Hospice, 2010 SW H.K. Dodgen
Loop, Suite 201, Temple, TX 76504.
Arrangements by Sneed Funeral Chapel of Lampasas.
Burial information: Lometa City Cemetery
This information was last updated 05/18/2016
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Date posted on this site: 01/11/2025
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