Robert Byrd

A Celebration of Life for Retired Chief Petty Officer Robert Steele Byrd of Mountain Home, Arkansas, will be 10:30 am, Wednesday, October 17, 2012, at Kirby & Family Funeral Home Chapel, with Reverend Doug Huskey officiating. Visitation will be from 6:00 pm until 8:30 pm, Tuesday, October 16, 2012, at Kirby & Family Funeral Home. Robert went to be with the Lord on October 14, 2012, in Mountain Home, Arkansas at the age of 83. He was born August 17, 1929, in Indianapolis, Indiana, the son of Harrison H. and Ethel Smith Byrd. He married Shirley J. Swearingen on December 16, 1988, at Mountain Home, Arkansas, and was a Retired Chief Petty Officer for the United States Navy. Robert was a U.S. Navy veteran of the Korean and Vietnam Wars. Robert lived in Mountain Home, Arkansas since 1935, moving from Indiana. He was a member and past president of the Fleet Reserve Association. He enjoyed cattle raising, fishing, the NBA, and was an avid Miami Heat fan. Robert is survived by his wife, Shirley J. Byrd; son, Keith (Jane) Byrd of Magnolia, AR; daughter, Kathy (Russell) Hutchens of Norfork, AR; four step-sons, Braxton (Denise) Smith of Smyrna, TN, Bobby (Linda) Smith of Louisburg, NC, Mike (Elise) Bonde of Mountain Home, AR, and Robert (Lisa) Bonde of Mountain Home, AR; step-daughter, Cindy (Craig) Frampton of Ozark, MO; sister, Rose (Marlin) Johnson of Mountain Home, AR; eleven grandchildren, eleven great-grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, brother, Thomas Byrd, sister, Pearl Miller, and step-son, Scott Bonde. Burial will be in the Kirby's Tucker Memorial Cemetery, Mountain Home, Arkansas, with Bill Adams, Jimmy Durmon, Lynn Rand, Larry Hoffman, Brad Elbrader, and Dave Miller as pallbearers. Honorary pallbearers will be Chuck Johnson, Sam Curran, and members of the Fleet Reserve Association. Military Honors will be provided by the Ozark V.F.W. Post #3246 Honor Guard. Memorials may be made to Lone Rock Baptist Church Building Fund or Hospice of the Ozarks. Arrangements are by Kirby and Family Funeral and Cremation Services.