Olen Robert Merry was blessed with an abundance of leadership qualities. It would be accurate to say that this man was an outstanding luminary and that his natural abilities served him well. He knew with certainty how he wanted to set priorities in all aspects of his life. He struck those who knew him as the kind of person who awoke in the morning with a clear sense of exactly what he expected from his day and how to set about accomplishing those goals. Olen was a man who definitely liked order and was most comfortable with an organized and structured lifestyle. When this climate was absent, Olen would set about immediately to create it.
Olen was born on October 2, 1945 at St. Mary's Hospital in Emporia, Kansas. His parents were Olen and Carrie Merry. Olen was brought up to be reasonable in his actions and was taught to use his intellect wisely. He was an honest and straightforward child, traits that reinforced his self-confidence. Even at a young age, Olen was credited with having a positive influence on those around him. The positive atmosphere that Olen generated spread to his family. Olen was raised with three sisters. He had older sisters, Viola, Mildred and Darlene. Olen served as a catalyst within the family. He often found himself in the role of providing fair solutions to those sibling disputes. In every family activity, Olen was able to demonstrate his uncommon logic and skill at building compromise.
Olen's enthusiasm for learning and the personal energy that enthusiasm generated led to his exhibiting leadership qualities early on in his childhood. He liked to see things executed properly and showed a skill for taking control of situations that were drifting out of control. At the same time, he was willing to experiment with different approaches as he worked a plan towards a solution. As a young boy, he took part in farm related activities. In his spare time he liked fishing and hunting.
When it came to academics and school, Olen's organizational skills reaped dividends. Olen was able to create a system for getting his class work done in a proper and timely manner. With a strong ability to analyze his schoolwork and assignments, he could apply a practical, common sense approach completing his studies. He showed a natural curiosity in the manner in which he tackled new types of problems and would regularly challenge his own reasoning ability in finding solutions. He graduated from Emporia High School in 1963. He enjoyed some courses more than others and developed favorite classes and teachers. His favorite class in high school was mathematics.
The work habits and approaches to studying that Olen utilized in high school also served him well in college. Olen always seemed on a quest for knowledge. He was able to generalize, summarize and compile information for his classes, employing a matter-of-fact approach. Olen was intuitive and mentally alert, seemed to crave the challenge of solving complex problems. He also pursued graduate school, earning his master's degree. His favorite courses were business administration.
In a group of friends and acquaintances, Olen was typically the first person to take the initiative to go up and greet someone new. That quality made him very approachable by others throughout his life. This same quality brought Olen the reward of many friends. Maintaining loyalty to those friends was a trait that came naturally to Olen. He believed that he should treat others in a fair manner, in the same way he wanted to be treated. Olen also showed a great deal of appreciation for the accomplishments of his friends. While growing up, one of his best friends was Duane Smith.
As Olen knew in other aspects of his life, he had a clear vision of what he sought in a relationship and worked hard to achieve it. Juanita "Janie" was a significant part of his life, and it wasn’t necessary for Olen to be overly sentimental or expressive about it for others to be aware of their mutual devotion. Olen's secret to success was that he always kept the lines of communication open in the marriage and applied the important skill of being a good listener.
Family and children were important to Olen. Olen was blessed with four children, two sons, Arnold and Alan, and two daughters, Tara and Laura. They were also blessed with eleven grandchildren, Arnold, Pearl, Britteny, Chelsea, Olivia, Milee, Kinsley, Ashlynn, Talon, Colton and Mila. Olen was able to keep order in the family by using the same efficient and straightforward methods with the family as he did at work. Olen rarely made a scene when it came to discipline. Instead, he was subtle and patient in his dealings when teaching the children right from wrong.
At work Olen was viewed as a natural leader. He could marshal all of the available resources, including personnel and materials, in order to meet virtually any objective. He was great at developing strategies and made maximum progress with little wasted effort. Olen was also adept at uncovering new and more efficient ways of getting things done. He was able to establish and meet objectives and schedules through long range planning and was always able to keep the big picture clearly in sight. Although Olen might have been described by some as an overachiever, he was without question a dedicated and diligent employee. His primary occupation was a financial advisor. He was self-employed for 30+ years.
Olen was an Air Force Retiree. He served in South East Asia. Olen saw action for many years during the Vietnam War era, he was also a POW. Through his dedication and hard work, he achieved the rank of Chief Master Sergeant. He received several awards including a Purple Heart and a Vietnam Service Medal with one Bronze Star. Olen's fellow soldiers knew that he worked well within the system, understanding the importance of rules and striving to follow them. Olen's life approach was all about order.
Not only did Olen find pleasure in pursuing his various hobbies, he also enjoyed the discovery and research involved in learning about them. His skill at problem solving had a positive influence on these activities as well. His favorite pursuits were dancing, shooting, traveling, riding his motorcycle and relaxing in his hot tub.
Olen's ability to motivate, direct and organize others made him a valuable asset to the organizations to which he contributed during his lifetime. Olen was one who could be counted on to work hard to implement goals and required little to begin work on a specific task. Once a project was begun, Olen had a definite methodology for seeing it through to completion. Throughout his later years, Olen was an active member of the VFW and the Shriners.
Olen was a man who took pride in upholding his beliefs. When he became active in community affairs, he did so in the same determined and forthright manner that he applied to other aspects of his life, serving on committees for the Elks, Shriners and motorcycle clubs. Politically, Olen was a strong supporter of the Republican party.
Traveling, especially vacations, was another way for Olen to apply his exceptional leadership and organizational skills. He liked exploring different places but also enjoyed designing and scheduling the trips in advance. He had real talent for developing the perfect itineraries. Favorite vacations included driving his motorcycle through the mountains, he loved trees and the wilderness.
Olen was a lover of animals and cherished his pets. One of Olen's favorites was Rottweilers. They were best friends for Olen and he has been breeding them for over 26 years.
When Olen's retirement finally came in 1988, he was well prepared. He had worked out all of the details well in advance and knew exactly what he was going to do. In retirement, he found new pleasure in working on his rental properties, fishing at the lake house and spending quality time with his family. Always a well-informed person, Olen enjoyed adding to his wealth of knowledge. Retirement afforded him the time to enjoy that experience and provided one more opportunity to look ahead at what life might offer him.
Olen passed away on September 12, 2021 at University Medical Center in Lubbock, Texas, and will be cremated and kept with his spouse and four children.
Olen Robert Merry knew what he wanted from life and never hesitated in going after it. He could be characterized as a driven individual, someone who understood the importance of achievement. Olen was decisive and outspoken at times but was also positive and upbeat about most things. He was a leader, both intentionally and sometimes by default. If he saw that something needed to be done, he was always ready to step up and actualize, organize and implement a plan.
He is already deeply missed.
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