Gary Swor

(From Konantz Warden Funeral Home)

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 5, at Konantz Warden Funeral Home for Gary Lynwood Swor, 70, Lamar, who died at 11:44 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024.

A visitation will be held prior to the service, beginning at 10 a.m.

Memorial contributions may be made to the family to help with final expenses or to the Barton County Memorial Park, in care of the funeral home.

Survivors include his wife, Melody Metzger, of the home; a son, Judson Metzger and wife Meghan, Webb City; four grandchildren who knew him lovingly as “Pa”, Kobyn Metzger, Maysville and Landon, Cooper and Berklee Metzger, all of Webb City; a sister, Sondra Biller and husband Gerald, Sarasota, Fla.; a brother, Mike Swor and wife Judy, Savannah, Ga. and two very special nieces, Emily Roybal and husband Raphael, Savannah, Ga. and JoLyn Turner and wife Laura Hendrickson, High Point, N.C.; three great nieces and nephews, Eliana, Roman and Asher Roybal; an uncle, James Lloyd Hodges and wife Sharon and their daughter, Shelley Muller, Texas; a brother-in-law, Martin McCall and wife Ann, Lancaster, Texas; two sisters-in-law, Candace Tanner and husband James Allen, Fort Walton Beach, Fla. and Lucinda Howard, Richardson, Texas and their children, Shaun Howard, Plano, Texas and Joel Howard and wife Christine, Wylie, Texas and Tiffany Phillips and husband Bill, La Jolla, Fla.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Oliver Willoby Swor, Jr. and Marion Madeline (Talbot) Swor; his grandmothers, Elsie Jones Carter and Mary Adams Hodges and beloved aunts and uncles and cousin, Mary Esther Swor and husband James Thomas Trotter and Pauline Jones Chapman and his father- and mother-in-laws, Eugene L. and Joanne Guy and Oliver and Edna Metzger.

Mr. Swor was born Dec. 26, 1953, in Dallas, Texas, to Oliver and Madeline Swor. He was reared in the Richardson and East Texas area and attended Richardson High School. He worked as a self-employed carpenter for many years and also shared a woodworking enterprise with his parents, often selling their goods at the famous 4th Monday Canton Flea Market in Canton, Texas.

He and Melody kept in touch over the years, having known each other since their school days and when she attended her 20th class reunion in 1994 they reconnected and he re-located to Lamar soon after. They were married on August 21, 1996 (during the Lamar Free Fair) by Judge Charles Curless.

After moving to Lamar, Gary was employed as a welder at Thorco Industries for several years and then became the janitor at Lamar High School, where he made close friends and thought highly of many of the teachers. Prior to retirement, he also bartended at the Modern Day Vets and formed many friendships while there.

He was a member of the First Baptist Church of Lamar, having been one of the first members to be baptized when the new sanctuary was opened in 2006. Even towards the end, when he didn’t have the energy to do much else, he loved going to church and soaking up the atmosphere that was provided, especially the music. He was a good man who will be missed by all who knew and loved him.