A service of remembrance was held Friday, March 7, 2008 at First United Methodist Church in Grand Junction for Earl “Pork” Comer, 72 of Grand Junction.
The Rev Deb Parkinson, pastor of First United Methodist Church in Perry, officiated. Gary Haupert was soloist, with Becky Keeney as accompanist. Honorary casket bearers were Kim Rueter, Marc Hoffman, Dick Schlicht, Keith Riley, and Bill, Brian, and Scott Bates.
Casket bearers were Craig and John Brelsford, Marty Hoffman, Mark Gannon, Jim Linn, and Bruce Wessling. Interment was in Junction Township Cemetery at Grand Junction.
Services were arranged by Slininger-Rossow Funeral Homes Inc. of Jefferson and Grand Junction.
Earl Edward Comer, known to family and friends as “Pork” was born December 27, 1935 in Granger. He was the son of Earl William Comer and Opal Mae (Gilliland) Comer. Pork had an older brother, Eugene William Comer.
Pork and Gene later moved to the farm outside Rippey. Pork attended Rippey High School and graduated with the Class of 1955. He played basketball and baseball, and played saxophone with the school band.
On June 3, 1956 he married Sharon Luther, his high school sweetheart. They moved to a farm west of Dana in 1957, where he farmed until 1961 when they moved to Cheyenne, WY. Pork joined the Cheyenne police department and spent the next 20 years working and raising his family.
The family loved to go camping and fishing, and loved riding motorcycles. Pork began playing golf, and was a huge Denver Broncos fan. He retired from the police department in 1981 and moved back to Iowa to take up farming with his stepfather, Bill Allen.
Pork and Sharon lived in Grand Junction, but never lost touch the good friends they made in Cheyenne. Every year they would travel to Wyoming for the annual Wyoming Open Golf Tournament. Pork loved to play golf and played every opportunity he got. Both he and Sharon played in many tournaments together in Iowa and Texas. They became “Winter Texans” later and spent the last 15 years living in Texas and Iowa.
Pork Comer died February 27, 2008 while wintering in Weslaco, TX. He was preceded in death by his brother, Eugene, and his father, Earl.
Pork is survived by his wife Sharon Comer; his mother Opal Allen of Dallas, TX; his brother Dennis Allen of Dallas, TX; his two daughters, Debbie and husband John Mullen of Urbandale, and Denise and husband Lee Swan of Palm Springs, CA; three grandchildren Johnnie Mullen and Jamie Mullen of Urbandale and Curtis Swan of Palm Springs, CA; several nieces and nephews; other relatives and many friends.