Earl Herman Rivenburg

Services for Mr. Earl Herman Rivenburg, 82, of Gilmer, Texas will be held 2:00 P.M., Saturday, May 18, 2013 at Croley Funeral Home Chapel in Gilmer with Pastor Kerry Roy officiating. Burial will follow at Sunset Memorial Park. Visitation will be held on Friday, May 17, 2013 from 6:00 until 8:00 P.M. at the funeral home. Mr. Rivenburg passed away on Monday, May 13, 2013 at the Wesley Oaks Memory Care Center in Sulphur Springs, Texas from complications of pneumonia. He was born on December 6, 1930, in Peabody, Kansas to Hugh and Elizabeth Rivenburg. Earl was their 5th and final child, as his mother died shortly after his birth. He was given to a hired hand and his wife to raise and unfortunately, his was not a happy childhood" At an early age he set out on his own and was taken in by Emma Seifert as a farmhand, in Carrier, OK., where he graduated from high school in 1948. It was here, that he met and married his first wife, who bore his 2 children. Earl enlisted in the Army in 1953, and served 3 years at Fort Chaffe in Arkansas as head cook to the Generals. After his honorable discharge, he returned to Enid, Ok and farmed, raised cattle and trained horses. Earl was a 4-H leader and an active member of the Cherokee Strip Round-Up Club, Paint Horse Association and Quarter Horse Association. In 1980, Earl moved to Texas. He held several jobs remodeling homes and never missed a chance to "cut a rug" at the Elks or Moose Lodge. He took pride in making the local ladies swoon ( and married a few of them.) Earl never met a stranger. In his later years, he could be found most Sunday afternoons at his brother, Edwin"s farm, in Big Sandy, Texas playing horseshoes and eating homemade ice cream. Earl"s final years were spent in Gilmer, Texas, where he enjoyed a special friendship with Betty Dempe. After surviving 2, near fatal car accidents, Earl spent the remainder of his life in the memory care unit at Wesley Oaks in Sulphur Springs. The caring and professional staff there, were his family and he grew to love them all and they loved him. Earl is survived by his 2 children; daughter, Bridget Ciliberti and her 3 sons, Nicholas, Nathan and Lucas, who brought joy to his life through song; son, Austin and his wife, Emel and their son, Aslan of Peterborough, UK: and he also leaves several nieces and nephews that will cherish his memory. He was preceded in death by his sister, Marjorie Phillips; brothers, Kenneth, Robert and Edwin Rivenburg. In lieu of flowers, please donate to Autism Speaks,donate@autismspeaks.org or mail to Autism Speaks, 6330 San Vicente Blvd, Suite, 401, Los Angeles, CA. 90048 as Earls grandson, Nathan, suffers from this dibilating disease. Visitation will be held on Friday, May 17, 2013 from 6:00 until 8:00 P.M. at the funeral home.