In tribute: 'Never a short conversation' with Lynn Berry

CLOVIS - In 65 years, Lynn Berry never met a stranger. And if you spent time with him, your world had fewer strangers in it, too.

"He taught me to respect people in the public, because you never know what someone was going through. You respect people," sister Jacque Berry told The News. "You didn't go anywhere with him, because you were not going anywhere fast. There was never a short conversation with Lynn."

Whether you were out with Berry or simply speaking with him on the phone, you could count on getting wrapped up in a story or talking with any of the myriad people that Berry knew or who knew him.

That will happen after more than four decades working for the community's newspaper, starting his job at the Clovis News Journal at age 17. But Berry was a talkative troublemaker before that, too.

"As much as he was the protector, he was also the typical big brother," Glenn "Bubba" Berry told The News, recalling a childhood incident when the boys were playing darts outside.

"He hit me in the arm, and when I ran to tell Ma, he hit me in the back," Glenn Berry said laughing. "I didn't tell Ma for 20-some years.

"If you're going to make it trouble, you better make it worth it," he mused.

Glenn Berry agreed that "there wasn't enough lawyers in the whole country" for his brother to have written an opinion column for the newspaper, since he wasn't shy to share his mind.

"I know he'll probably be remembered most for his humor, his political incorrectness, his magnetic personality and all the mischief he created. He was a fun, fun guy," wrote The News' publisher David Stevens, who knew Berry since 2001. "But I'll never forget how much he cared about this newspaper and how hard he worked to make it successful, even after he didn't work here anymore. He was forever delivering lost newspapers to readers, driving staff to and from work when it snowed, representing the paper at community events. It just seemed like he was working all the time. And he loved it."

Working all the time goes back to Berry's childhood, said his brother.

"You didn't grow up with our dad without learning how to carry your weight," said Glenn Berry. "There were no time-outs."

No time-outs then, when the Berry boys were put to yardwork early on Saturday mornings growing up. Berry would maintain a passion for lawn care through his life, with family estimating he mowed his yard every other day.

"If he wasn't mowing his yard, he was mowing somebody else's," said his nephew J.T. Berry.

That came up in Glenn's last phone call with his brother, Berry apologizing for not yet mowing his yard and promising they would have beers together soon. Berry and his wife Marty had been four-wheeling outside Ruidoso and visiting friends that weekend prior and he had some early morning appointments with friends the next day. Berry passed July 31 in Clovis, where he had dedicated his life.

"He said he felt better than he had in a long time," Glenn said. "They had so many more plans."

Marty Berry told The News her late husband was "a man for the community.

"He loved his job, he loved his family," she added.

Tyler Berry remembered his uncle "Lynnerd Skynyrd" as many will, for his "contagious laugh," his grin and the "twinkle in his eye.

"It was just hard not to smile around him," he added. "He was a great man of God. I remember when we'd have family dinner when I was little and he would always lead the family in prayer before our meals. He truly lived as a child of Christ treating everyone with respect, care and generosity."

Still, Berry's nephews said their uncle had catchphrases and many other stories that couldn't be put to print, and Berry's siblings agreed. Even now, there probably still aren't enough lawyers.

"I'm going to miss him," Stevens wrote. "So is most of eastern New Mexico. But we're all lucky we got to know him."