People close to Mayflower Mayor Frank Pearce describe him as a man of faith who loved his family and gave freely of himself for the betterment of his community.
Pearce, 66, died Tuesday after battling cancer since September.
Pearce was an Armyveteran of Vietnam. After 17 years of service, he retired, but then worked 13 more years as a civilian for the military. After his second retirement, he moved to Mayflower, where he served as president of the chamber of commerce from its inception in 1995 until he was elected mayor in 1999.
He survived his first battle with renal cell carcinoma in 1999, when he had a kidney removed. In September he had another surgery for the same type of cancer, which was in his stomach this time. He died about 2 p.m. at McClellan Veterans Hospital.
Gwen Pearce married Frank Pearce in 1965. They marked their 40th anniversary on Dec. 19. She said of her husband, "I think he would want to be remembered as a man that loved the Lord and his family. To him the most important thing was presenting himself, whether at work or in the neighborhood, that whatever he did would honor God. His work ethic was to make his 'boss' look good."
She continued, "He was a man who loved me. Never since we've been married have I felt anything but love from him. He never had an unkind word to say. I felt like he was God's gift to me."
Jane Ploszay of North Little Rock is Pearce's younger sister. She said, "As mayor of Mayflower, he made that job not a part-time job but a full-time job. He was always seeking to do anything that would make the city better. He wrote many grants, one for a park and another for a recycling center. He was always looking for ways to make the communitybetter."
"He was a wonderful big brother. He was always there when my dad died and I was only 12. What was most important was when my mother had dementia, he moved back to Mayflower to help take care of her."
Ploszay said she had been her mother's primary caregiver. Her brother took their mother into his home.
"Mom moved in with Gwen and Frank. I had her on the weekend and they had her during the week," she said.
Ploszay pointed out her mother died in 2002 on Jan. 17, the same date as her brother's death.
Will Elder of Mayflower has been a next-door neighbor to the Pearces for 12 or 13 years. He is also an alderman and was chairman of the planning commission when Pearce was a member before he was elected mayor.
"Frank was my friend É," Elder said. "He has worked very hard and tirelessly for the city and to be a good citizen. We all hated to see him in the situation he was in with this lingering cancer. In a way, we're relieved that it's over for him and his family, and yet it's going to be tough for us. We're going to miss him.
"A mayor's job in Mayflower is a part-time job, and he put in 40 or 50 hours a week always and worked tirelessly and unselfishly for the betterment of the community. Both as a friend and a mayor, we're going to miss him tremendously."
Barbara Mathes of Mayflower is the city's recorder and office manager, as well as justice of the peace for the Mayflower area. She said Pearce was "a great community leader."
"He's just been such a mentor to me. I think he was just born to be a leader. He was kind of my hero. Someone I could look up to and admire."
She said Pearce served on many boards and committees, including the Metroplan and Union Pacific boards, and this led to good things for the town.
"Before he became mayor, Mayflower didn't get a lot of positive recognition. Now, everywhere I go people say, 'I know your boss. I serve on a board with him.' Frank brought really positive recognition to Mayflower."
For those who knew Pearce well, his absence will be deeply felt, Mathes said.
"I'm just very sad," she said. "I'm very sad for the community and the city of Mayflower. I'm thankful for the life he lived, and I know he's gone to heaven. I've always thought that he'd leave such a legacy. He's going to be greatly missed."
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(Staff writer Rachel Parker may be reached by e-mail at rachel.parker @thecabin.net or by phone at 505-1277.)
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