Earl Mercer, Jr.

Graveside service for family, will be at 11:30 am on Friday, November 15, 2024, at Sunset Memorial Gardens with Rev. Tom Willoughby officiating.

Burial will be under direction of Becker-Rabon Funeral Home.

Earl Mercer, Jr passed away on November 8, 2024, twenty days shy of 91 years old.

Earl, who was known by family as Sonny, was born to Edna Mae and Roy Earl Mercer on November 28, 1933, in Lawton, Oklahoma. He had two sisters, Patricia and Billie. Earl spent his childhood helping in his dad's grocery store, meat market, minnow farm, and other enterprises. He was raised attending First Baptist Church in Lawton and was a lifelong member. Earl was a 4-year baseball letterman at Lawton High and graduated in 1951. After high school, Earl attended The University of Oklahoma. He hitchhiked to Lawton on weekends to visit family and Shirley Soper. Earl married Shirley Jeanne Soper in 1953. He graduated from OU in 1955 with a business degree. He was proud that his daughter, son, and grandchildren graduated from OU also. Earl and Shirley returned to Lawton where their daughter, Jeanne, was born. Later, they moved to Oklahoma City where Earl worked for Addressograph Multigraph. Their son, Tod Soper Mercer, was born in OKC. Back in Lawton, Earl opened his own print shop "Mercer's Printing & Duplicating" at 11th and E. He ran his printing business and managed various properties around Lawton. Shirley sadly passed away in 1981. For many years, Earl worked as a property evaluator with brother-in-law, John Kennedy. In 1989, Earl bought land in Indiahoma and tended his pecan orchard, Post Oak Valley Pecans. Earl married Elizabeth Anne Rittenhouse in November 1991. Earl and Beth enjoyed traveling and taking deep sea fishing trips. They lived on the pecan orchard until 2010 when they moved into town. Earl was passionate about the great outdoors and impressed that passion on his family members. He shared many fishing and hunting trips with his son, son-in-law, nephews, and grandson. Earl was a dog person and usually had a canine companion right by his side. He was an avid reader, even as a young man, with a large collection of books. Earl Mercer, Jr was a loyal and steady man who left a lasting mark on all who loved him.

Earl was preceded in death by his first wife, Shirley Jeanne Soper Mercer; his parents, Roy Earl and Edna Mae Mercer; and his sisters, Patricia Howeth Sanders and Billie Karen Baker Sims.

Earl is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Mercer; daughter, Jeanne Weeks and husband Charlie, Pauls Valley; and son, Tod Soper Mercer and wife Christy, Tulsa.

He is survived by four grandchildren: Charlton Earl Weeks and wife Nikki, Norman; Kayla Porche and husband Chip, Broken Arrow; McKenzie Mercer, Tulsa; and Dakota Mercer, Oklahoma City; and two great-grandchildren: Ivy Jane Porche and Walker Carver Weeks.

Earl is survived by his stepchildren: Brad Rittenhouse and wife Selena, Lawton; Andrea Rittenhouse Garibay, South Carolina; and step grandchildren Madison Rittenhouse Gorbet, Maybree Rittenhouse Lawrence, Randy Garibay, Sean Garibay, and Tony Garibay. Additionally, Earl is survived by many nieces, nephews, cousins, and brother-in-law John Kennedy.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society or Oklahoma Wildlife Department.

An online guest book and sympathy cards are available at www.beckerfuneral.com

LINKS

Becker-Rabon Funeral Home

Lawton Constitution

http://www.lawton-constitution.com