Oarfid Lemmons

Oarfid “Curley” Lemmons was born and raised in Hominy, Oklahoma. The son of Clifford and Flora Lemmons, Oarfid spent his childhood working on the family farm. After the death of his mother at age 7, Oarfid took over the care of the house and his younger siblings until the age of 15 when his father remarried.

In 1946, with his parents’ permission Oarfid enlisted into the United States Navy and was assigned to the Naval Construction Forces (more commonly known as the Seabee’s).He served as a Seaman 1st Class in the South Pacific and Okinawa during the tail end of WWII.

After serving his country Oarfid returned to his home in Hominy, and went to the National LP Gas Institute to learn how to use butane and propane gases. Oarfid was then offered a job by a Circus passing through his home town. He drove a truck for the circus from Oklahoma through Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, and into Montana. He then quit the circus and worked several jobs from irrigating wheat, short order cook, and dredge mining before ending up on a turkey farm in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Once that job was over Oarfid returned to his home in Oklahoma where unknown to him his family was getting ready list him as a missing person, as he had never told anyone he was leaving to work with the Circus in the first place.

Upon his return to Oklahoma, Oarfid went to work for a pipe company laying pipe in Nowata, Oklahoma. That’s where he met the love of his life Virginia “Judy” Parsons. They were married on June 9, 1956. Over the next three to four of years Oarfid worked for a fiberglass company in Illinois, then a plumbing outfit and Seaco Construction in Missouri. During this time the first two (Michael & Pamela) of Oarfid’s four children were born. He then moved back to the family farm to raise cattle and where his third child (Mary) was born. In 1961 Oarfid and his family moved to Southern California.

Within a few years of the move to California Oarfid obtained his State Contractor’s Licenseand his youngest child (Julie) was born. Oarfid worked in the construction industry off and on for the next thirty years. He helped to build both the Jr. high (Serrano) and high school (Montclair) that all of his childrenattend; the Montclair Mall, Black Angus and Fridays restaurants, and numerous homes. During this time Oarfid also owned a Gulf 76 gas station for two years, became a licensed Locksmith, and opened his first locksmith shop. He also worked in the maintenance department of USC during the 84 Summer Olympics.

In the fall of 1984 Oarfid moved to Hesperia and built his and his wife’s dream home. He continued to work off and on in the construction industry and running his locksmith business out of his home. Then in the early 1990’s he moved to Las Vegas to find work. Oarfid would help to build the Luxor and MGM Grand Casinos, the dome on the Circus Circus, and workedas a locksmith at the Four Queens. He then worked at the Nevada Test Site as a government locksmith for several years.

Oarfid moved back to his home in Hesperia during the late 1990’s where he semi-retired. This is when Oarfid began to help at the GAP (God Always Provides) Food Bank; where he volunteered for eighteen years. Up until his death Oarfid continued to run his own locksmith business.

Oarfid was preceded in death by both his parentsClifford and Flora, his stepmother Mary, older brother Olifford (Clifford), and younger sister Trillby. He is survived by his wife Virginia Lemmons, his children Michael D. Lemmons, Pamela Firestone, Mary Lee, & Julie Lemmons, his grandchildren Michael H. Lemmons, Joshua Lee, Dusty Lemmons-Howie, Casey Lee, & Jacqueline (Firestone) Stevens, his great-Grandchildren Dakota Oarfid Lemmons, Piper Lemmons, Tristan Lemmons, & Dylan Howie, and his younger siblings Clifford (Lyndon) Lemmons, Delilah (Janet) Hunzkier , John Lemmons, Ronnie Lemmons, & Kenny Lemmons.

A memorial service will be held on Wednesday June 15, 2015 at Kerns Mortuary, at 10:30 AM.