Birth date: Oct 7, 1916 Death date: Feb 3, 2020
Obituary Ralph Hayhurst Overstreet, 103, resident of Bentonville, Arkansas, passed away peacefully on Monday, February 3, 2020 at The Meadows in Bentonville, Arkansas. He was born October 7, 1916 in Hamlin, Texas to Paul C. Overs Read Obituary
don I remember your father well he was a good man he will be remembered as part of bentonvilles storied history
I last saw my Uncle Ralph in late October 2019. His son Don and I carried an old steamer trunk in to his apartment, thinking that it was something he would remember. This trunk was the one that his mom, Louise Hayhurst, had brought from Texas to Kentucky where she met Paul Overstreet. I will not forget the smile that came to Uncle Ralph's face when he saw the trunk. He opened it up, and then remarked that it used to have a tray in it that his mom had filled with old family photos, and that she would bring the trunk to family reunions for others to share in the photographs. I doubt that i could have brought him anything better, both for his enjoyment and my last memories of my Uncle Ralph.
In the mid 1960s I spent summers at my Granddaddy Paul Overstreet's farm. He recounted to me an amazing anecdote about his son Ralph (my favourite uncle), which has inspired me over the years. When Ralph was about twelve, the family acquired a Model T Ford automobile. As the family was within walking distance of the college where Professor Paul Overstreet taught, he went to work leaving the car at home. When he returned at the end of the day, he found that Ralph had removed the motor from the car and had it disassembled and laid out on the kitchen table. Paul asked Ralph why he had done this: the simple reply was that he wanted to see how it worked. His father then calmly told Ralph that he would need the car in the morning, and that he expected it to be back in running order by then. It was.Paul Overstreet was legendary for giving his students "impossible" problems to solve, believing that working on real-life problems, even if difficult beyond normal expectations, would develop critical thinking.skills. He brought one such problem home, in the form of a complicated wooden piece puzzle. His best students had required over two hours of trial and error to solve the puzzle: most could not figure it out. Professor Paul presented it to a young teenage Ralph, who placed it on the table and looked at ti for a full ten minutes. He then picked it up and immediately solved the puzzle. As I occasionally visited Uncle Ralph in his store, I was always amazed at his understanding of "how things work." I was truly blessed to have a person of his stature to inspire my own life, especially in the context of my stint (last century) as a nuclear naval submarine operator who also needed to understand "how things work."
Chief Overstreet was my first connection to the Navy when I enlisted in the USNR unit in Fayetteville in 1967.I ended up spending 26 yrs in the USN/USNR retiring in1993 as a Navy Chief.All those years I wanted to pattern my career after Chief Overstreet.To me he was the epitome of a Navy Chief .He commanded respect but in a gentle way.I was able to visit with him in the jewelry store just a few years ago.He showed me the picture of the hut that was built for him for watch repairs on the island of Saipan ,and we had a nice visit.I am honored to have known him.Semper Fortis Chief Overstreet
My deepest sympathy for the friends and family of Ralph. He was such a great guy. I met him and his wife Belle at what used to be RJ's ..we would have wonderful conversations. He fixed my watches, my bracelet and was happy at everything he did ..or it seemed to me anyway. He will be missed but lived a great life from what I have known. Rest in Peace my dear friend it was great to have known you..Jesus gained another great soul...
