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Submitted: 2/9/14 • Approved: 2/10/14 • Last Updated: 2/13/14 • R981109-G0-S3
May 11, 1919 - July 18, 2011
*Obituary
Roller McNutt Funeral Home
Samuel Cohen Lawrence, age 92, died July 18, 2011. He was born on the Lawrence family homestead in Greenbrier, Arkansas on May 11, 1919. He was preceded in death by his parents, Samuel Lawrence and Cora Montgomery Lawrence, his wife Norma Harrington Lawrence, brother Howard Lawrence, and sister Montine Lawrence Brown. He is survived by nieces, Rosemary Hamel and Carolyn Thornton and their children, Monty Bradburn, Jenifer Hamel, and Chad Thornton; and three great-great nieces and nephews.
Cohen was a lifelong faithful member of the Church of Christ. As a child he rode with his mother Cora in a horse drawn buggy to Guy for church services prior to joining a church they later helped build in Greenbrier.
His family operated a farm on which they grew sugar cane, corn, cotton and sweet potatoes; raising their own beef and pork. The farm had a smokehouse and a blacksmith shop, which also held house moving equipment operated by his father. At the age of 12, when his father passed away, Cohen joined his mother and brother in continuing to operate the farm. Even with this responsibility, Cohen played basketball and graduated from Greenbrier High School.
For 40 years, Cohen and his brother Howard operated Lawrence Brothers House Moving Company – phone #5 – in Greenbrier. They moved hundreds of houses and other structures from the public right-of-way, as roads were expanded and interstate highways were built across the state.
Cohen and Norma enjoyed traveling the United States researching the genealogy of the Lawrence, Montgomery and Harrington families.
Cohen had a special sense of humor and loved to joke. One of his favorite stories was about a nurse who asked his height. He told the befuddled nurse he was five feet and eighteen inches tall.
After a disabling injury in 2006, Cohen lived his last years in the home and on the family land he loved on Green Valley Drive in Greenbrier.
With his gentle nature, his honesty and his desire to keep peace in his surroundings, Cohen enriched the lives of his family and many friends.
Funeral services will be held at 2:00 pm., Friday, July 22, 2011, at Greenbrier Church of Christ with Glen Elliott officiating. Interment will follow at Pearson Cemetery in Greenbrier. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the church.
Contributed on 2/9/14 by hawkinsdonna
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Record #: 981109