Colonel Richard Eugene Haley

Colonel Richard Eugene Haley (retired), 80, died July 10, 2026, at The Crossing at Riverside Health & Rehab in Searcy surrounded by family. He was born March 30, 1946 in Searcy, Arkansas and was the oldest of the four children of the late Clarence Eugene and Geneva (Strayhorn) Haley. He graduated in 1968 with a B.S. degree in Printing Management from Arkansas State University where he was a member of Pi Kappa Alpha (PIKE) fraternity. ASU is also where he began what would be 30 years of military service as a member of the ROTC. Upon graduation, Richard spent 3 years on active duty in the US Army. That was followed by 17 years with the Arkansas National Guard where he rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and served as the Commander of the 217th Maintenance Battalion. The 217th was a command-and-control headquarters staffed with 1,400 personnel to manage the maintenance operations of 10 companies in direct and general support during Operation Desert Shield/Storm. He went on to spend his last 10 years of service with the US Army Reserve where he rose to the rank of Colonel and was the Director of Logistics for the US Army Garrison Unit before retiring in 1998. In his civilian life Richard briefly worked for White County Printing Company in Judsonia and then went on to spend 20+ years at Commercial Printing Company in Searcy, first as an employee and then as an owner when he and two other employees purchased the company from its founders in 1980. In August of 2004, Richard began a new career with FEMA as the Logistics Section Chief for Region VI. Over the next 15 years, he was deployed to work disasters all over the country. He was regarded as one of the best Logistics Chiefs in all of FEMA and was routinely requested when available. His FEMA co-workers have said that over the years he was liked and respected by everyone who knew him or who had worked for him, including people who had served with him during his military career decades earlier. Richard will be remembered as a generous, loyal, hard-working, kind, and caring family man who was a wonderful story teller with a quick wit and playful sense of humor. If he was home, he was outside in his large garden or his shop. He could grow, build, and fix anything. Nothing made him happier than sharing the fruits of his labor. That included whatever piece of meat he just took off the smoker or making his famous breakfast of scrambled eggs, biscuits and bacon (his favorite meal) for his family and friends. Everyone loved Pappy’s scrambled eggs. Richard was one of the good guys, one of the very best. He will be dearly missed and deeply loved forever. He is survived by his son Richard F. “Richie” (Amie) Haley of Searcy; daughters Suzanne (James) Modlin of Searcy; Leisa (Mike) Benetz of Sherwood; Lora (Rocky) Brown of Little Rock; Libby (Keith) Brown of Sherwood; Lydia (Paul) Carson of Cincinnati, OH; sisters Linda (Larry) Leonard of Searcy, Jane Tanner of Searcy, Lenita Haley of Judsonia; 11 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren along with many nieces, nephews, extended family, and friends. He is preceded in death by his parents, his wife Angie Haley, and his brother in-law, Wayne Tanner. A celebration of life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family welcomes memorial donations to the American Cancer Society in his honor. Arrangements are entrusted to Powell Funeral Home of Searcy. www.powellfuneralhome.net

Colonel Richard Eugene Haley

March 30, 1946 - July 10, 2026