Lawrence Carpenter

August 19, 1929 - November 15, 2011

Lawrence Jay Carpenter, 82, of Corvallis unexpectedly passed away on Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2011. Known by all as Larry, he was born on Aug. 19, 1929, in Clayton, N.M. At age 5, he and his family moved to Lake Oswego. He graduated from West Linn High School in 1947. Upon graduation, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, where he quickly advanced through the ranks. Along the way, he was reunited with his school-age friend Katherine Jean Smith. The couple were married in 1954. They had three children, Captain Carl Andrew Carpenter, Katherine Jean Coburn and Dr. Chip Carpenter. Commander Carpenter’s illustrious naval career spanned 29 and a half years. He received his officer commissioning through the elite Seaman to Admiral Program in Newport, R.I., in 1958. During his career, CDR Carpenter served aboard several naval ships, including the USS Mississippi, the USS Boston, the USS Columbus, the USS Norton Sound, the USS Charles F. Adams, the USS Gridley and the USS Sampson. These assignments took him and his family to many ports throughout the United States, including Port Hueneme, Calif.; Boston, Mass.; Bath, Maine; Bremerton, Wash.; Charleston, S.C.; Virginia Beach, Va.; and San Diego and Monterey, Calif. In 1970, CDR Carpenter returned to Oregon to serve as the Executive Officer of the Navy ROTC at Oregon State University in Corvallis. In 1973, he was selected for Command at Sea of the USS John Paul Jones (DDG-32), home-ported out of San Diego. During his naval career, he earned a bachelor’s degree from the Naval Postgraduate School, and a master’s degree from OSU. He was awarded numerous personal and campaign awards, including the Meritorious Service Medal, the Good Conduct Medal, the Navy Unit Commendation Award, the National Defense Service Medal, the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, the Korean Service Medal and the China Service Medal. He retired from the Navy in 1976, and brought his family back to Corvallis. Here he embarked on his second career, as a real estate broker. He and his wife, Kay, worked together to make Homeport Realty a very successful business over the past 32 years. Larry loved working, and always enjoyed great conversations with his renters, especially the students. Besides his business, Larry’s hobbies included crabbing on the Oregon Coast, duck and deer hunting, fishing trips to Alaska, vegetable gardening, driving his Kubota, and generally being outdoors. In later years, he loved to travel across the United States to visit his children and grandchildren. He was the grandfather of six, four boys and two girls. Larry is survived by his wife, Katherine Jean (Kay); son Carl Carpenter (Maria); daughter, Kathy Coburn (Clarke); and son Chip Carpenter (Petra). He will always be remembered as the example of a successful, self-made man. Services will take place at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 22, at DeMoss-Durdan Funeral Home. Donations can be sent to the NROTC Taffrail Fund, 104 Naval Armory, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331.