Larry D. Mills, Jr.

Larry D. Mills, Jr., 77, passed away on Thursday, May 30, 2024, at St. David's Hospital in Georgetown, Texas.  He was born on August 9, 1946, in Amarillo, TX to Lawrence and Ruth Harris Mills.

Services will be held at First Baptist Church Lampasas, 402 S. Key Ave on Saturday, June 15, 2024, at 11 am with visitation an hour prior.  Interment will follow at Oak Hill Cemetery.

Larry grew up in Amarillo, TX.  He graduated from Amarillo High School in 1964.  After high school, he attended West Texas State University in Canyon, Texas where he received a Bachelor of Science.  He began work as an insurance adjuster in Decatur, TX where he worked for 7 years.  He was a member of First Baptist Church in Decatur when he was called into ministry.  He graduated from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1983 with a Master of Religious Education.  He was ordained in 1985 and officially retired in 2010 but continued to serve and volunteer up until his death.

Larry served as Senior Pastor, Interim Pastor and Youth Minister in several churches across Texas.  Churches he served include Buchanan Street Chapel, Amarillo, Texas; Duffau Baptist Church, Hico, Texas; Clairette Baptist Church, Hico, Texas; Round Grove Baptist Church, Dublin, Texas; Lingleville Baptist Church, Lingleville, Texas; Riverside Baptist Church, Stephenville, Texas; Bluff Dale Baptist Church, Bluff Dale, Texas.  He retired from preaching at Buchanan Street Chapel, a mission of First Baptist Church Amarillo.  While leading Buchanan he oversaw many community outreach programs such as food pantry, clothing closet and the Christian Men and Women's Job Corps.  Larry was involved with the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) and local SBC associations.

Larry married Rita LaVelle Harper in 1968 in Wellington, TX.  They were happily married for 56 years.  Larry was a member of First Baptist Church Lampasas.  He lived to serve the Lord and His message.  For over 40 years Larry consistently preached a message based on the love of God and how it is freely available to all.  He also looked for ways to help each church he served to celebrate who they were and what they could become.  He will be remembered for his love for God, his love of people and his one liners, "You can laugh or cry but laughing is more fun."  His business card read, "if you meet me and forget who I am, you've lost nothing.  If you meet Jesus and forget Him, you've lost everything."

Larry was preceded in death by his father, Lawrence Donald Mills and his mother, Ruth Harris Mills.

Survivors include his spouse, Rita LaVelle Mills of Lampasas; his daughter, Rebecca and spouse Bryan Oaks of Lampasas; his son, Timothy Mills of Portland, Oregon; his brother, Jimmy and spouse Susan Mills of Bellevue, Washington; his grandchildren, Ethan Oakes, Hadassah Mills, and Jude Mills; his niece, Jennifer Mills and nephew, Wade Mills.

Condolences may be left for Lawrence Donald Mills, Jr's online guestbook at www.sneedfuneralchapel.com