Noel Jeffery

Noel Jeffery was born to Bodie and Rita Jeffery in Mount Olive, Arkansas on November 23^rd, 1942. Noel passed from this earth on January 29^th, 2020. He was surrounded by his family. He was surrounded by love. Noel was the fourth of five brothers, Bill, Jim, Red, and Jerry, all who preceded him in death. He is survived by his sister, Angela Kaiser, his wife, Linda Jeffery, his daughter, Rhonda Jeffery Dockins, and his son Greg Jeffery.

Noel grew up fishing the White River and for all of his days fishing was the activity he enjoyed and shared most with friends and family. Fishing and boating. It's been said Noel taught more people to fish and ski than anyone ever had before, or ever will again.

Noel went to work in his early teenage years to help feed his family. Times were hard then in ways most Folks today do not understand. Sacrificing himself for those he loved and cared for, and even for those he just met, was a running theme throughout Noel's life.

In his early 20's, he along with some of his brothers made their way to Little Rock to find better work. There he became a union carpenter and met his wife. They grew up just a few miles from each other, but had never met before Little Rock. After they were married, they moved back home to raise their children in the land and with the people they loved. Noel loved his home, family and especially loved live music.

From an early age, Noel had a knack for automobiles. He said on many occasions that he loved anything that burned gas. Except motorcycles.

Noel's talent with cars saw him become one of the first automatic transmission men in the state of Arkansas. Later, it landed him a job teaching auto mechanics at Ozarka Vocational Technical School in Melbourne. Noel really came alive in the classroom. He enjoyed teaching and his students. It is no surprise that upon hearing of his passing, many of his former students were the first to reach out and tell us: ‘what wonderful a man Mr. Jeffrey was' and how he had shaped and molded their minds and lives….and it wasn't just his students. Noel was driven to help people that he thought needed it. After he built a shop out at the house, he fixed a lot of cars for young people and struggling people, and often just charged them for the cost of parts. And sometimes he charged a lot less than that.

With that approach to business, Noel was never destined to be wealthy. But he was always destined to be loved, by many people from many walks of life, who were blessed enough to experience the man's passion for life and for helping others.