Norman Earl Lile was born March 31, 1938 the son of Ona E. Lile & Minnie H. (Sharp) Lile in Springfield, MO. And passed away on May 10, 2022 at the age of 84. He was preceded in death by the love of his life, Etta Catherine Lile, his parents, and brother, Arnold Lile and Cathy’s “Yocham” family. He is survived by his daughter Brenda L. Cook & husband Lenny, his son Lesley N. Lile, DPM, grandchildren Jessica Lile, William Lile and Rachel Crawford & husband Ethan and 2 great grandchildren Obadiah & Ester Crawford. Also surviving are his step mom Myrt Lile-Oswald, sisters Carol Parker and husband Kim, Nancy Lile, Carol Blevins and husband Brian, sisters in law Donna Lile, Judy Quackenbush and husband Allen and brother in law Joe Sherman and many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

Earl grew up mostly here in Springfield with his mom & brother. He attended Study Jr. High and Central high school. But spent lots of time in Fair Grove & Lamar, MO with his Sharp family. He loved going to the yearly Sharp reunion catching up and reminiscing. The food is always good!

He also spent time in Peoria, IL with his dad & step mom. He worked at his dad’s filling station and this is where his love of old cars started. At the age of 17 he asked his dad if he would sign for him to join the Air Force. Earl received his GED and served at Hill Air Force base in Ogdon, Utah. He was honorably discharged and returned home to Springfield.

On his return to Springfield, he enrolled at SMS. While attending, he met the love of his life, Etta Catherine “Cathy” Yocham! They met at a Valentine’s Day dance and both were smitten with each other right away. They were married 9 months later on November 27, 1960. They shared an amazing life together for 59 years & 8 months until her death.

Shortly after they were married, Earl & Cathy moved to Lamar, Mo where Cathy had been hired as a teacher. While living there they welcomed their daughter, Brenda to their family. Earl joined the Mason Blue Lodge of Lamar and followed the Mason creed. He worked for the Lawn Boy factory and when it shut down they moved back to Springfield. He bought and operated the DX filling station at Fremont & Sunshine. During this time they welcomed their son, Lesley. All was good until the highway department decided to close Sunshine St. to widen the road. This devastated his business which affected his family.

Then came the opportunity to go to work for the Springfield Fire Dept. He had found his place and stayed 29 years & 4 months until he retired as engineer in 1993. He loved his time with the Fire Dept. and made lifelong friendships. He received the nick name “Fat Rat”, affectionately.   He always said it was fun and he enjoyed it very much. But when the bell rang you had to go to work. He knew his “brothers” had his back and he had his “brothers” backs.

He had a construction company with his Brother Arnold which led him into building houses. He help many of his firefighter buddy’s and family members build homes for their families. He also built 2 homes for his family. He was very proud of the dream home he built for Cathy & himself. He drew the house plans, hammered nails, poured concrete, sanded & stained wood work, painted walls, laid tile and meticulously built that house to be his and Cathy’s forever home since 1978. And it was a show place!

It was no secret that Earl loved old hot rods. He built several of his own. And again he was very meticulous about everything. They had to be loud, fast & shiny! He loved going to the car shows and showing off his cars.  He loved watching NASCAR and drag racing. And when he could he would go to the races and to the Salt Flats.

After retirement, he and Cathy bought an RV and started traveling. They made several trips to Florida. And to Colorado with the Martin’s and the Parker’s to climb mountains in their Geo Tracker. Earl was in awe of the mountains.

They also took a long trip with Curtis & Sharon Martin and explored Canada, Newfoundland & New Brunswick. They saw Niagara Falls & traveled into Maine, Vermont, Boston & New York then down to Washington D.C. They also took a Caribbean cruise to celebrate their 25^th wedding anniversary and a trip to Hawaii.

Earl loved his kids and was very proud of them both. He attended all events including father/daughter banquets, band concerts, plays, basketball, baseball, football games & track. If he didn’t have to work he was there. He taught them how to drive a car, how to hammer a nail, how to change their oil & a flat tire, how to swim, how to water ski and drive a boat and how to have fun. But mostly he taught them how to love. Because he loved BIG!

He never met a stranger. He was a big flirt. And he had the most infectious laugh! He loved to hunt. Going to deer camp at the Barley’s was a big event. But the biggest joy in hunting was when he shot a big ole elk bigger than a horse in Colorado. The Liles had Elk meat for over a year! Lots of chilli!

He also liked his beer. But, it was best if it was “John R.” cold. Which meant it had to be almost a slush when you opened the can.

He was a stranger to none. Where ever he went he made a lifelong friend and he flirted with all the pretty ladies.

In his later years, Earl suffered with dementia. And after Cathy died, Les moved in to take care of him at home.

Earl would often say, “I’ve had wonderful life” and “I love you dearly”.  Well, Pop, Poppy, Brother, Fat Rat, we’ve had a wonderful life with you and we love you dearly! Rest well.

Earl and Cathy will be laid to rest together at the Missouri Veteran’s Cemetery, Springfield, Mo

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.