Ralph Lynn Greenwalt

Ralph Lynn Greenwalt, 84, of Hazen passed away May 27, 2013. He was born in Prairie County, Ark. on April 12, 1929 and was the only child of Stanley E. Greenwalt and Bessie Mae Floyd. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Idena Devore Greenwalt; son, Bert Greenwalt; son, Eric Greenwalt and his wife, Angie; grandchildren, Chad Greenwalt and his wife, Summer, and Amy Greenwalt Carroll and her husband, Chris, and three great grandchildren, Garrett, Ryder, and Addie Beth. Ralph was a lifelong farmer, first with his parents and later with his wife and two sons. During his farming career, Ralph focused on developing his farm's soil and water resources. He and his father, S.E. Greenwalt were among the first in Prairie County to adopt precision land leveling and underground irrigation pipelines in the early 1960's. At that time, he also developed the farm's first surface water storage reservoir in cooperation with the construction company which built Interstate Highway 40. Beginning in 1979, Ralph was a leader in developing no-till soybean double-cropping technology in the region. One of his last major projects was to build the first surface water reservoir authorized by the Grand Prairie Irrigation Project in 2001. In recognition of his conservation efforts and achievements, Ralph was recognized as the Prairie County No-Till Farmer in 1983, the 1984 Soil Conservationist of the Year by the Arkansas Wildlife Federation, the 1984 Arkansas East-Central District Farm Family of the Year, the 1985 Arkansas Outstanding No-Till Farm, and the Prairie County Outstanding Conservation Farmer in 2002. An active member of Riceland Foods, Ralph, like his father, served on the Hazen Grain Drying Cooperative (1980-1995) and Riceland Foods (1984-1994) boards of directors. He also served a term on the Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board. Ralph was a longtime member and Deacon of the Center Point Missionary Baptist Church. His loyal, steady, and quiet support of the church and its ministry provided a strong moral and spiritual example for his family and community. Funeral services will be held 2 p.m., Wednesday, May 29, 2013 at the Center Point Missionary Baptist Church. The family will receive visitors from 5 to 7 p.m., Tuesday, May 28, at the Westbrook Funeral Home in Hazen. Online obituary at www.westbrookfuneralhomehazen.com.