Joseph Wallis Briscoe, Jr.

Joseph Wallis Briscoe, Jr. passed peacefully from this life on Friday, November 27th, 2015 at the age of 96. Joe was born in Alexandria, Louisiana on July 11, 1919. He was the son of Joseph Wallis Briscoe, Sr. and Viola Fodrea Briscoe. Joseph was preceded in death by two wives, Gladys Mullins Briscoe and Nan Everett Briscoe. Also preceding him in death was his sister, Virginia Marie Briscoe. He is survived by his three sons and five daughters: Joseph Wallis Briscoe, III (Lucy Rhodes) of Little Rock, Mary Ann Briscoe Campbell (Guy) of Little Rock, Virginia Carol Briscoe Tustison (Joseph) of Little Rock, David Michael Briscoe (Deborah) of Toadsuck, Mark Stephen Briscoe (Gail) of Orange Beach, Alabama, Stacy Wylie (Rob) of Mt. Vernon, Texas, Tracy Bruce of Little Rock, and Kelley Higdon DePoy of Little Rock. He is also survived by numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Mr. Briscoe was a graduate of Little Rock High School, class of 1939. He was a veteran of WWII and served in the South Pacific Theatre with the 757th Army Engineers during 1943-45. He was in the Philippines, Luzon and at Milne Bay in New Guinea and completed his tour at the rank of Staff Sargent. After completing his active duty, Joe joined the Arkansas Air National Guard and was a Flight Readiness instructor for pilot training. He later joined the Civil Air Patrol auxiliary of the Army Air Force (armyairforce.com) and served for 15 years. He completed his service with the CAP at the rank of Captain. At Little Rock High School, Joe studied auto mechanics and started his automotive career at 555, Inc. He was a "top notch" mechanic for autos, airplanes and racing boats. In 1946, Joe traded three city lots, a shotgun and $150 for a 1937 Piper Cub with no brakes. Each day he would fly his plane from Edwards Dairy in Mabelvale (known to some as the residence of Al Garms) to Modern Aircraft at Adams Field, where he worked as an aircraft mechanic. Later he traded the Piper Cub plus $800 for an Aeronca L-3. The Aeronca L-3 was used in WWII by the Army Air Force as a short-range reconnaissance plane. It was designed to land and take off in short distances and from unprepared landing strips. It was the perfect plane for a pilot living in Mabelvale on a few acres of land. Joe also used the Garrett's Dairy air strip at West Baseline and Col. Miller Road (currently Eagles Hill and Eagles Nest apartments). On a flight from Little Rock to Kalamazoo, Mich., he flipped and crashed the plane in a forced landing due to bad weather at Carbondale, Illinois. He rebuilt the plane and flew it for many years. In Michigan during the early 1950s, Joe was working as a delivery driver for Schafer's Bread Co. When Jack Schafer discovered that Joe was a very skilled auto and aircraft mechanic, he hired him to work on his speedboat "Such Crust" for the Detroit River Silver and Gold Cup Speed-Boat Regattas. In those days, these fast "speed-boats" were using modified aircraft engines. Schafer moved Joe and his family to his resort home at Gull Lake. Joe worked on the boats and his wife, Gladys, worked on managing and remodeling the resort. Jack Schafer hosted other Gold Cup contestants in his resort. They included Guy Lombardo (Tempo), Horace Dodge (My Sweetie), Stanley Dollar (Skip-A-Long), Stanley Sayres (Slo-Mo-Shun), the Dossin Bros. (Miss Pepsi), Albin Fallon (Miss Great Lakes) and many others. After a few years of living in the wake of millionaires and high drama, Joe and his wife longed for the friendliness of Little Rock and the quiet rural life of Mabelvale. They returned in 1953. Through the years he worked at numerous auto dealerships in central Arkansas as a shop manager and service manager (Cook Auto, Madison Cadillac, Critz Auto, Russell Chevrolet and others). Joe also worked for Alcoa Mining Co. and Reynolds Metals Co. near Bryant in Saline County and endured the heat of the smelter rooms during the height of the bauxite processing days for aluminum. After returning home for a shower and sandwich, he would put on a suit and head to an evening appointment with his clients to sell life insurance. Joe Briscoe spent many years serving his community. He served as Constable and Justice of the Peace for the Fourche Township (included Mabelvale, Alexander, Sardis at that time); Deputy Sheriff for Pulaski County; and in 1956, he served as Civil Defense commander. As a Life Time Member of the NRA and an NRA Official Referee (for pistol and rifle matches), he requested arms training for his Civil Defense volunteers. With authorization from the State of Arkansas and with the use of NRA Instructors, all of the Mabelvale Civil Defense volunteers received training in the safety and use of pistols. He acquired the weapons with help from several law enforcement agencies and Mabelvale became the only Civil Defense Police Auxiliary in the state of Arkansas that was allowed to carry and use side-arms. Joe constructed his own backstop for target practice on his Mabelvale property. He owned a gun shop where he sold, repaired and customized firearms. He loaded his own ammunition and taught his children fire arm safety and marksmanship. In other interests, Joe raised Beagle puppies. He field trained them for rabbit and squirrel hunting before they were sold or given to friends. He enjoyed hunting and loved to hunt squirrel along the Saline River in Grant County. He hunted deer and antelope in Arizona and Colorado. In addition to his gun shop, Joe had several entrepreneurial enterprises. He had a storage facility for cars and boats called Little Rock Home Base. His own collection of "wheels" would have filled the facility over time: school buses, dump trucks, pickup trucks, vans, tractors, cars, motorcycles and a motorcycle with a sidecar. Joe finished his employment history at the Arkansas Highway & Transportation Department, District 6. He retired in 1984. Joe always had multiple projects in progress. Even when ill, it was difficult to get him to stay in bed for more than 2 or 3 days. He seldom missed a day of work. He performed his own plumbing, electrical and carpentry. He built his own shops and remodeled or added additions to most of his homes. He always had time to teach his children how something worked, how to repair it and how to use it properly. Joe was a great story-teller and had a wonderful memory: from memories of playing in the State Capitol Building's tunnels and cupola above the dome at the age of 6 to recalling the phone number of friends after acquiring macular-degeneration. As part of his excellent memory, Joe orally listed the persons he wanted his family to thank that helped him so much during his last years of his life: his friends and the management of Andover Independent Living in Little Rock for their warmth and friendship; the many heart doctors at UAMS for their expertise and honesty; Dr. George Gillian, DDS of Little Rock for his friendship, excellence in skill, knowledge and creativity; Dr. Richard Harper, UAMS Ophthalmologist for his knowledge and excellence in care; the staff, CNAs and nurses of Hospice Home Care in Little Rock (South Bowman location) for their constant care and comfort; and the many friends and family members that prayed for his relief. Funeral service will be Saturday, December 5, at 10 a.m. with visitation at 9 a.m. at Griffin Leggett Healey & Roth, 5800 West 12th Street, Little Rock. Interment will follow at Martin Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Mabelvale United Methodist Church, 10500 Woodman Street, Mabelvale, Ark. 72103. Online guestbook is available at www.griffinleggetthealeyroth.com.