Larry H. Lampkin

Larry H. Lampkin

Gardnerville, NV

Larry H. Lampkin, a longtime Gardnerville resident, passed away on Wednesday, November 27, 2024, at home in Gardnerville, NV. His passing was unexpected. He was 74 years old.

Larry Henke Lampkin was born on May 18, 1950 in Fort Madison, IA. He was the first of four children born to Neal R. and Roberta J. (Henke) Lampkin. As a young boy, Larry lived in Burlington, IA with the family. In August of 1962, the Lampkin Family moved to Washington, IA. He went through middle school and high school there graduating with the Washington High School Class of 1968.

Larry led an interesting life. He was an active athlete for the Washington Demons Football Team and the Demon Track Team. He was part of the Washington YMCA High School Division Swim Team that dominated Iowa as State Champions for three consecutive years in ’66 - ‘67’ and ’68. After graduation, Larry attended Centerville Community College and later, he attended the University of Northern Iowa on a Swimming Scholarship. He held every Backstroke record at UNI for 20 years after he graduated in 1973. He was invited to participate and compete in the U.S Olympic Team tryouts in 1972 at Springfield, MA.

At 15 years-old, Larry started working part-time at Hy-Vee Food Store in Washington. When he moved to Cedar Falls to attend college, he stayed working for Hy-Vee eventually working at Cedar Falls, IA, Shenandoah, IA, Des Moines, IA and ultimately, he managed stores at Urbandale, IA and Des Moines for Hy-Vee.

Larry left Hy-Vee in 1983 and accepted an offer with Fleming Foods Inc. as Vice-President of Retail Sales. A later move to California came when Larry accepted a job offer with Fedco Inc. in the Southern California area as Vice-President of Liquor and Beverages.

In the late 1990’s Larry accepted an offer from Walmart and with Walmart, he quickly moved into a Store Manager position at Palmdale, CA. A few short years later, when an opening came at Carson City, NV near Lake Tahoe for Store Manager, Larry was selected for the position. He successfully managed the store there until his retirement 6 years ago. Larry enjoyed driving a School Bus for the local school system for the past few years. His fun-loving personality fit well with the parents of the children riding his bus each day. He loved the kids, and he always had a fun story about something that happened on the bus. Larry loved people. He did some work for Aramark Inc. at Lake Tahoe. He drove people to and from destinations around Lake Tahoe including Dinner Cruises on the lake.

Larry was married to Rachel Lampkin and together, they have six children, Alicia, Andrew (Kate), Gina, Erica (Roger), Sheila, and Gus. They have eleven grandchildren. He was the center of all their lives. They have an active family. Larry will be missed by all.

Larry is also survived by his mother, Roberta J Lampkin of Washington, IA, brother Rick and (Jane) of Fort Myers, FL, brother Jeff and (Renae) of Pleasant Hill, IA, his sister Ann C Williams and (Jim) of Washington, IA. He also leaves many nieces and nephews.

Larry was preceded in death by his father, Neal R Lampkin and an infant daughter, Lindsay. He was also preceded by his paternal grandparents John and Ola Lampkin, his maternal grandparents Kenneth C and Bessie Henke, Sr.

A Memorial Service will be held at the Washington United Methodist Church, Saturday, January 25th at 11:00 AM. A gathering will be held immediately following or 2:00-4:00 PM at the Washington Country Club. A private family interment was held in Nevada earlier.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Larry H Lampkin Memorial for the Washington Y, aquatic center to aid in children’s swim lessons, %Ann C Williams, 121 N Iowa Ave., Washington, IA 52353