Earnest 'Ernie' Logan Upton Jr.'s Obituary
Earnest (Ernie) Logan Upton, Jr., 80, of Bella Vista, Ark, passed away Saturday, February 25th, 2023 at home surrounded by his loved ones. He lost his battle with cancer but went to be with the Lord in his Heavenly home. The world lost an incredible human being. He was a kind, intelligent, hard-working man with a heart of gold, a great sense of humor and the highest ethical standards. Ernie was an amazing husband, father, grandfather, brother and a good friend to many.
Ernie is predeceased by his parents Earnest Loga Upton and Nina Carolyn (Schmelzenbach) Upton of Oklahoma City, as well as his beloved Uncle, Russ Upton of San Francisco, California. He leaves behind his wife, the love of his life, Tamra Lea (McCollough) Upton, his sister Carol (Upton) Little Reed and his children Donovan Dixon and wife Anna of Austin, Texas, Julie Tate of Norman, OK, Kevin Dixon and wife Leah of Oklahoma City, OK, Susan Dominguez and husband Dan of Edmond, OK, Becky Stevens and husband Robert of Mustang, OK, Mandy Butler and husband Austin of Siloam Springs, Arkansas and Matt Moore and wife Miranda of Springdale, Arkansas as well as many beloved grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Ernie also leaves behind his in-laws and good friends Gene McCollough and his wife Zelah and sister-in-law Sherry McCollough.
Ernie was born on June 26th, 1942 in Oklahoma City to Earnest Loga Upton and Nina Carolyn (Schmelzenbach) Upton. He attended Northwest High School and graduated from Harding High School, Oklahoma City in 1963. He received his bachelor’s degree from Southern Nazarene in Bethany Oklahoma and his master’s degree from Oklahoma City University. He started his career at 1st National Bank in Oklahoma City where he was an officer at the bank, later he became an officer at 1st Data Management in Oklahoma City. Later he used his information technology and banking backgrounds to become a Certified Information Systems Auditor. He enjoyed helping banks in Oklahoma and Arkansas learn how to stay compliant with complex information system and banking regulations.
Ernie had a diverse and accomplished life. In addition to his professional success, he loved his family and had many dear friends. He always loved the lake, when his kids were young, he took them to the lake and camping on a regular basis. Later he and his wife Tamra enjoyed their lake house and going out on the boat. He loved riding motorcycles and enjoyed going on road trips with his wife and friends. After he retired, he became a very accomplished woodworker. He and his best friend, Gene McCollough, spent hours building furniture and wooden toys for family and friends. Many are blessed to have beautiful pieces handcrafted with love by their dad, grandad or good friend.
A Celebration of Life will be held Saturday, March 4th at 1:00 p.m. at Nelson-Berna in Rogers, Arkansas with gravesite service to follow at Liberty Cemetery near Dry Fork, Arkansas. Visitation will be at Nelson Berna on Friday, March 3rd from 5:00-7:00 p.m. To leave a written tribute or if you are unable to attend and want to watch a live stream of the funeral, go to https://www.bernafuneralhomes.com/obituaries/Earnest-Ernie-Upton/#!/TributeWall Flowers may be sent to Nelson-Berna Funeral Home 100 S 28th St, Rogers, AR 72758 or in lieu of flowers donations may be made to Circle of Life hospice nwacircleoflife.com/donatesupport/#donatenow
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