Alfred "Joe" Houser resided in Ozark, Arkansas, died Saturday, September 12, 2009, at St. Edward Mercy Medical Center in Fort Smith. He was born February 1, 1929 in Fort Smith, Arkansas to the late Watt Adley Houser and Hazel Goodwin Houser. He was 80 years old.

After graduating from Paris High School and attending Oklahoma State University, he joined the Army Air Corps in 1949. Shortly thereafter, he transferred to the U.S. Air Force where he had a distinguished 26 year career, retiring in the rank of Chief Master Sergeant in 1975. After retiring from the Air force, Joe worked as a Hospital Engineer for Health Corporation of America in Baytown, Texas before returning to Arkansas in 1988.

Memorial services will be 11:00 a.m., Wednesday, September 16, 2009, at the First United Methodist Church in Paris, with "Full Military Honors" at the church. Burial of cremains will be at Kersey Cemetery, north of Ratcliff, under the direction of the Brotherton Brothers Funeral Home in Paris.

Officiating the memorial service will be the Rev. Don Eubanks.

Joe is survived by his sweetheart, Irene Ryan; his daughter, Bonnie Hixson of Aurora, Colorado; his son and daughter-in-law, John & Linda Houser of Alaska; his daughter and son-in-law, Sallie & Ted Hanfelder of Columbia, Missouri; his son, Charles Houser of Altus, Oklahoma; his daughter and son-in-law, Elizabeth & Kenneth Lickliter of Carlsbad, New Mexico; one sister, Betty Brooks of California; five grandsons, Jordan and Terrence Hixson, Joe Houser, and Ryan and Ben Hanfelder. In addition, Joe is survived by the many members of the Gattis Family that have embraced him as a beloved member of their family.

Contributions may be made to the Kersey Cemetery Perpetual Care Fund or the Methodist Church through the First National Bank in Paris, Arkansas.

To pay an online tribute, please visit www.brothertonbrothersfuneralhomes.com.