Henry Allen "Hank" Oder, Jr.

His family will receive friends from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, September 4, 2012, at McEwen Funeral Service, Mint Hill Chapel, with a memorial service to follow at 11:00 a.m. in the funeral home chapel. The Rev. Rollo Leimer will officiate. Interment will follow in Forest Lawn East Cemetery, Matthews, NC, with military honors.

Hank was a 1943 graduate of Lexington (VA) High School. Entering college after high school, he received his AB Degree in Political Science in 1947 from Washington & Lee University. While in undergraduate school, Hank was a member of Sigma Chi Fraternity.

Hank entered the US Army in September of 1950. In 1952, following his graduation from Officer Candidates School and as a young Lieutenant, he was sent to Korea as a forward observer and was awarded a Bronze Star for valor. He was discharged from the Army in November of 1953.

Returning from the war, Hank returned to Washington and Lee University, where he graduated in 1956 with his L.L.B. (J.D.). He was a member of Phi Alpha Delta Fraternity.

Hank practiced law from 1956 to 1961 in Lexington, VA and later in Arlington, VA. It was in Arlington that he joined the law firm of a former classmate, B.E. Stephenson.

Hank began his career with Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC) in 1968 when he developed and was the lead instructor of the Real Estate Pre-Licensing Program. This was the first program of its kind in the North Carolina community college system. It later became a two year program. From 1980 to 1990 he was program director of the Paralegal Program, and from 1990 until his retirement in 1994, Hank taught various law and police related courses. He retired from CPCC after 26 years of service.

Hank was a member of the VFW Post 2423, and a charter member of the Korean War Veterans Association N.C. 265. He was a former member of the American Legion.

Following his separation from the service and on December 27, 1953, Hank married Louise Hoyle Walker, a native Charlottean. Three children were born of the marriage before it ended in divorce.

In addition to his parents, Hank was preceded in death by his brother, Thomas W. Odor.

Survivors include his children, Valerie Dodd Johnston and her husband, William, of Hillsville, VA, Mark Anderson Oder and his friend, Teresa Coggins, of Lake Norman, NC, and David Allen Oder and his wife, Leila, of Charlotte; grandchildren, Caroline Johnston Mora and her husband, Andres, Tyler Johnston, Ashley Oder Cortes and her husband, Diego, and Joseph Oder; four great-grandchildren; and a sister-in-law, Joy Odor of Reidsville, VA.

Memorials may be sent to the Institutional Advancement/CPCC Foundation, Post Office Box 35009, Charlotte, NC 28235-5009.

Condolences may be offered at www.mcewenminthillchapel.com.