Cherry M. Scott passed away on July 3, 2023 at his home on Lake Eufaula. Cherry was born in Macomb, Oklahoma, on June 16, 1933, to Arie Clement Scott and Melford C. Scott.
He is survived by his sweetheart of 63 years, Janetta Moore Scott; his daughter, Lori Scott Dreiling and husband Duane; his son, Reggy Scott; sister, Joyce Washburn and husband Orval; brother, Melford Scott and wife Margaret; brother-in-law, Bill Moore; and niece Gayle Shinn Bodwell.
He is also survived by his darling grandchildren, Taylor and Lonnie Ford, Abby Scott, Palmer Scott, Jake Dreiling, and Kate and Christopher Bennish who have listened to Papa’s stories for so long that they can repeat them verbatim.
He is also survived by his great-grandchildren Lucas and Leighton. Cherry was a happy and positive person, who loved to tell long human interest stories and to tease his friends.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Melford and Arie Scott, sister, Betty; and brother Roy.
Cherry graduated June 16, 1933 – July 3, 2023 from Checotah High School in 1952, where he was a proud member of the Wildcat football and baseball teams and showed livestock with the FFA.
He entered the Army soon after he graduated from high school and served in the 24AAA anti-aircraft unit in Korea where he was assigned to the radar section.
When he returned from the Army he worked for the Daily Oklahoman and in the Molybdenum mines in Buena Vista, Colorado.
He pursued his education at Connors State College where he received an Associates Degree in 1966.
He went on the Highway Patrol in 1966, and took his first assignment in Seiling, Oklahoma. His next assignment was in Alva, Oklahoma. During his stint there, he finished his Bachelors degree in Law Enforcement and Psychology at Northwestern Oklahoma State University. He graduated with honors and was listed in Who’s Who in American College and Universities.
In 1973, he was assigned to the Robert R. Lester Training Division of Oklahoma Highway Patrol in Oklahoma City, where he taught Breathalyzer, Firearms, Criminal Law, Traffic and Accident Investigation to new recruits.
In 1976, Cherry graduated from Oklahoma City University with a Masters in Criminal Justice Administration and took an inner agency transfer to the Department of Corrections, where he became Director of Training for the State of Oklahoma. While at Corrections, as a leader of the Riot Squad, he was trained at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
In 1980, Cherry left the Department of Corrections and began Cherry Scott and Son Concrete, which he operated for 22 years.
In 2004, Cherry and Janetta retired, moved to Eufaula and built their retirement home on the lake, where they enjoyed years of gardening and volunteering.
His faith and his church have always been a priority in his life. Wherever he went he told the good news that Jesus Christ is Lord.
He was ordained a Deacon at Alva First Baptist Church, and has served in the same position in First Southern in Del City, South Del, and Sunnylane in Oklahoma City and Stidham Baptist Church in Eufaula. He also served as part time Education Minister at Sunnylane and South Del Baptist.
In 1982, he had the privilege of leading a mission group of volunteers to Botswana, Africa, to build an airplane hangar for missionaries who flew out into the Bush to do dental work and minister to the Bush people. The project took 21 days because of the 115 degree temperatures and the difficulty of mixing the concrete for the hangar by hand.
A memorial service was held at 2 p.m., at the Stidham Baptist Church on July 8, 2023. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Stidham Baptist Church at 113487 NS 411 RD, Eufaula, OK 74432. His cremains will be interred in the Moore Cemetery in Fame, Oklahoma.
