Harold Vern Friend, age 83 of Winfield, KS, passed away September 29, 2022 at Winfield Senior Living.
Herald was born February 12, 1939 on the family farm north of Howard, to Jesse “Vern” and Florence (Armstrong) Friend. He grew up alongside 4 siblings. He attended Rule Vale School in Fiat, then Fairview School, and graduated from Howard High School in the class of 1957.
In 1956, Harold joined the Army Reserves and served his country in the Reserves for 8 years, attending the Field Artillery Lineman school at Fort Chaffee, Fort Smith, AR. He worked several places as a young man, including the Russell Simmons Service Station north of Severy and then Sunset Manufacturing in Wichita before going to work as a Machinist in several machine shops in Wichita and Derby. He then went to work for Beech Aircraft in 1977, and continued a career with them until retiring in 2001 from the Engineering department where he built test equipment for aircraft.
Harold enjoyed fishing and building pulling tractors. He spent many weekends on Winfield lake taking family and friends fishing on his cabin cruiser boat, which was the biggest boat on the lake. When he wasn’t on the lake, he was building pulling tractors with his brother in law and nephew. They loved building these tractors, and would travel to pulls in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas as part of the Garden Tractor Pulling Association. The first tractor he and his nephew Chance built was named “Get A Grip”. He then went on to build his own tractors “Gopher” and “Bucket of Bolts”.
He is survived by sister, Louise Havens of Winfield, KS and many nieces, nephews, and extended family.
He was preceded in death by his parents, brothers Melvin and Arthur, and sister Phyllis.
A graveside service will be held at 11:00 AM on Tuesday, October 4, 2022, at Grace Lawn Cemetery in Howard, KS
Memorial contributions are suggested to the Grace Lawn Cemetery and can be mailed to or left with the funeral home.
Services are entrusted to Countryside Funeral Home, 206 E. Washington, PO Box 1233, Howard, KS 67349