Twyla Merry Puryear

Twyla was the daughter of Harold Leon Williams and LaRee Louise Shimp. She graduated from Neosho High School in 1963 and went on to find employment at the Rogers Medical Center for more than 50 years. She was an avid doer of many things: walking, reading, watching sports, puzzles, cheering on the Arkansas Razorbacks, going to church, taking care of her plants, and spending time with friends and family. As she got older, she became well-known in town for combining those things, finding a way to read her books…while she was walking…sometimes to church or with friends. If she’d had a cell phone at the time, she probably would have tried to squeeze in watching her beloved Hogs at the same time.

In spite of how much she enjoyed all of those things, there was nothing she loved more than dedicating herself to the task of being a mother - doing the best she could to provide a loving, caring, and structured home for her boys. Among other things, she taught them the value of family, hard work, and being able to be disciplined with time and money. As with most mothers, there was nothing she wouldn’t do for her sons.

For her younger son, Matt, it became her unspoken goal to attend every single one of his athletic events. With events all around the state and country, that was no small feat. Matt said he could only remember one sporting event that she was too sick to attend, a 7th grade basketball game between Oakdale and Elmwood, the big rival junior highs. Other than that noted absence in 1985, Twyla was at every single game, no matter where or when, an unofficial tally of at least 250 sporting events, likely more.

After retiring in 2014, Twyla moved to Nashville, not to be closer to any of her own kids, but to be closer to her new babies, her grandchildren, Claire and Caroline. She’d always considered herself a “boy mom,” but she quickly found herself a “girl grandma.” And once again, there was nothing she found more enjoyable than being a “Grams,” taking the girls to soccer games, thrifting, to dance class, to the library, or out to eat. She realized how important those years were that she got to spend with her granddaughters, and she was always glad that she made the decision to move to Nashville for those years.

Twyla was preceded in death by her father and mother, her brother Larry Pat, and her sister Debbie (Larry) Reynolds.

She is survived by her sister Sheri (Skipper) Paulk and her brother Mike (Kristi) Williams, as well as her sons, Tony (Lori) and Matt (Michelle), grand-daughters, Brittany, Claire, and Caroline, and great-grandchildren, Zeke and Ensley.

A memorial service will be held in Rogers, Arkansas on Monday, November 9, 2026, at 11 am.