Lawrence Edwin Zaloudek, Sr.

Lawrence Edwin Zaloudek Sr., age 84, of Benton, Arkansas went to be with God on April 27th after a lengthy struggle with all the illnesses that had plagued him during the last years of his life. He was preceded in death by his parents, Arthur and Frances Zaloudek, his older brother Arthur Zaloudek and his sisters, Dorothy Mae Zaloudek and Katherine Zaloudek Winburn. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Ruthalee Barnett Zaloudek; his son Lawrence Edwin Zaloudek, Jr. (Ed) of Benton who retired from CBS and moved home to be with his parents who needed him. Ed has been a very kind, loving and gentle caregiver; and two daughters, Brenda Watkins of Little Rock, who still lives in the family home her daddy built when he was 22 years of age and Callie Barrett of East End and her husband Bob Barrett, who Lawrence considered as a brother. Lawrence is survived by one brother, Donald Zaloudek and two sisters: Jeanie Davis and Helen Dumboski (Robert) all of North Little Rock. Lawrence is also survived by seven grandchildren: Ruthie Edwards of Memphis, Tennessee; Lawrence Watkins of Sherwood; Marsha Zimmerman of North Little Rock; Robert Barrett II of East End; Michael Barrett of Hot Springs; Amanda Barrett of East End; Devon Lozano of Ft. Worth, Texas and 10 great grandchildren: Alex, Kyle, Summer, Maye, Joe and Elissa Edwards of Memphis, Tennessee; Connor and Bailey Zimmerman of North Little Rock and Liam and Duncan Watkins of Sherwood. Lawrence graduated from Catholic High School for Boys in 1944. He retired from Brandon Company after 45 years of service. Aside from being a devoted family man, Lawrence was a member of Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church in Benton, Knights of Columbus, Stick Makers Guild of America, Lake Norrell Deer Camp and Spelunkers of America. He restored antique automobiles, built homes and was a spelunker where he explored and mapped wild caves in the Arkansas Ozarks. He is known as "The Stickman" and has over a thousand hand carved unique canes and walking sticks in circulation. One of his canes, a beautiful staff, is carried by Pope Benedict XVI who sent him a letter and photo thanking him for the staff and offering his prayers for Lawrence's many illnesses that he endured. The family would like to thank Dee Dee and Pat with Baptist Hospice for their care and support. A Funeral Mass will be 10 a.m. Monday, May 2, 2011 at Our Lady of Good Counsel with Father Richard Zawadzki as Celebrant. Burial will follow at Forest Hills Memorial Park. A visitation will be on Sunday, May 1, 2011 at Griffin Leggett Forest Hills from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. with a Rosary starting at 6 p.m. To sign the online guest book, please visit www.griffinleggettforesthills.com.