A personal tribute to Larry Cheek from Mayor Grimes

Posted

Our community has lost one of its finest citizens in the passing of Larry Cheek.

I have lost one of the best friends I have ever been honored to have. Our community will miss his steady hand, his wise counsel, his gifts as a peacemaker and his kind, generous, gentle, and loving spirit. I know I will miss talking with him every day and hearing his voice and seeking his counsel on many matters, most often what was best for town government.

Larry offered invaluable perspective and insight that I came to count on over the nearly two decades we served together. His family, his church, his friends and our town government will miss his wise, intelligent, prudent, and judicious approach. He was always thoroughly prepared at town board meetings, sensitive to concerns of citizens, careful to weigh all options (particularly ones that might be considered prickly), mild-mannered in his approach, sensible, practical, diplomatic and discreet. He was a devoted family man, who lived a life of integrity, a highly respected public servant and a man of God.

We owe a debt of gratitude to his many elders who mentored him from his youth into his adulthood for a life of service and then shared with us this exemplary, extraordinary human being. We are grateful he chose Siler City as the place to live his life, raise his family, and serve his church and community.

It is for these reasons that at his passing I directed our town, in an unusual but well-deserved tribute, the lowering of flags on our town buildings to half-staff for a period of five days.

I have lost a great friend. Siler City has lost one of her most favored sons.

To read more tributes to Larry Cheek, click here.