of BATESVILLE, AR

August 14, 1932 - June 16, 2004

Leo C. Rainey, 71, of Batesville died Wednesday, June 16, 2004, in a Batesville hospital.

Born August 14, 1932, in Center Ridge in Conway County, he was the son of Albert and Nancy Beulah Fulkerson Rainey.

He was a member of Harrison Street Church of Christ.

He attended Morrilton High School, Arkansas Polytechnic University in Russellville, and received a bachelor of science in agriculture in 1954 and a master of science in agriculture in 1964 from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.

He married Martha Sue Humphries of Lake Village on March 2, 1955.

He has preached for 44 years. He began preaching at Skaggs Church of Christ in 1959, where he preached regularly until moving to Batesville on his secular job in 1961. He also preached for congregations at Skaggs, Marcella, Cave City, Magness, Ash Flat, Charlotte and Agnos.

He was a retired area development agent with Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service where he worked for 29 years. For 22 of those years, he was assigned to work in northcentral Arkansas, serving consecutively as area rural development agent, district program leader and eventually district community development specialist, working with extension agents and leaders in 16 counties to stimulate economic development and social improvement.

He was involved in the organization and operation of the Arkansaw Traveller Folk and Dinner Theatre at Hardy. His experiences included more than three decades in the tourism industry. Since 1991, he worked for The Media Market Inc., primarily in different aspects of tourism.

During his tenure as a faculty member of the university, he, working with volunteer leaders, was instrumental in organizing many groups, most of which have survived for more than a quarter of a century. These include the Ozark Gateway Tourist Council; the Greers Ferry Lake Association (now includes Little Red River): Northeast Arkansas Tourist Association (now part of the Great River Road); Ozark Foothills Craft Guild (now Arkansas Craft Guild); Ozark Frontier Trail Festival at Heber Springs; Arkansas Folk Festival and Craft Show at Mountain View; and the Arkansaw Traveller Folk and Dinner Theatre at Hardy.

He and the late Wilson Powell, who was a Batesville historian, worked with leaders in Cleburne, Lawrence, Fulton, Sharp and Woodruff counties in advising on the initial organizational steps to take in forming a county historical society.

In 1988 he organized a promotion group in the Hardy area to promote Spring River Country (Hardy, Cherokee Village, Spring River, Highland, Ash Flat.)

Over the years, he arranged numerous educational seminars on subjects such as tourism marketing in various locations including Mountain Home, Batesville, Mountain View and Hardy. He was advisor to the county extension agents and workers. He was active in the Arkansas Hospitality Association.

He was the recipient of many awards, including the Distinguished Service Award by the National and State County Agents Association in 1975. He was inducted into the Tourism Hall of Fame presented at the Governor's Conference on Tourism in 1991 and the Arkansas Hospitality Association Hall of Fame in April 1994.

Survivors include his wife; a son, Alan Leo Rainey of Cushman; a daughter, Nancy Rainey Bridgman of Warrior, Ala; a sister, Jaunita Stell of Springfield, AR; five grandchildren, Nicole Bledsoe, Tim Rainey, Josh Hughes, Matt Bridgman and Adam Bridgman; and several nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; and three brothers, Wayne Rainey, Jerome Rainey and George Rainey.

The funeral will be at 10:00 a.m. Saturday at Harrison Street Church of Christ in Batesville will Bill Wheeler, Jr., Tom German, Adam Bridgman, Jack Richardson, Marcial Alvarado and Ralph Wallis officiating. Burial will be in Oaklawn Cemetery under the direction of Roller-Crouch Funeral Home of Batesville.

Pallbearers will be Benson Hardaway, Fred Arnold, John Treece, Phillip Lloyd, Tommy Gunn, Ted Hyslip, Steve Wells and Don Curtis.

Honorary pallbearers are Paul Mitchell, Pete Igou, Dick Milligan, Craig Ogilvie, Jim Horton, Lee Roll, Gerald Coleman, Dr. Gene Ring, Richard Mann, Clyde Stuart, Howard Young, Perry Stubblefield, George Stone, Bobby Hughes, Nelson Barnett, Joe Cothrine and Conway Lawrence.

Visitation will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday at Harrison Street Church of Christ.

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