Frazier lived ‘a Christian life’

Following a long and painful illness, retired carpenter Glen Frazier died peacefully at the age of 80 on April 11, the way his wife said he would have wanted — lying on a tree-shaded recliner enjoying the outdoors.

“He said he felt so good he wanted to go out and he wanted to be on his recliner,” said Macel Frazier, his wife of 36 years. “He was real weak and real slow, but he laid down and crossed his feet.”

After turning around to hang up the laundry, Frazier turned to speak to her husband. “I saw his face and I knew he was gone,” said Frazier. “I told my sister to come right quick and call 911. They said they never saw anyone die so peacefully.”

Frazier said being able to die peacefully was important to her husband, and a reflection of his Christian faith.

“He was a Christian, that was the main thing,” said Frazier.

According the Rev. Bob Gentry, pastor of Christian Fellowship Center east of Clovis, Frazier was personally active in evangelism well into his 70s.

“He was enthusiastic about missionary work, and even though he wasn’t with any organization, he went door-to-door handing out (religious literature) over nearly all of Clovis at one time five to seven years ago,” said Gentry. “It was quite a work, and he stayed faithful to that. We furnished the tracts, and he was continually at it.”

Frazier said her husband also put his faith into practice by volunteering as a handyman for those needing help. One who benefited was his neighbor Martha Viescas.

“We always knew when something broke, Mr. Frazier would come running to help,” said Viescas. “He would always come over and say ‘hi’ to the girls and play with them. He was a blessing to us. He was really good and he’s going to be missed.”

Frazier said her husband enjoyed living in Clovis after an earlier career running a flower nursery in the Seattle area. The couple did so to help family living here.

“We came here in 1975, my mother was in her 80s and she got sick and we wanted to come back and take care of her,” said Frazier.

While helping others and living peacefully was what he did for much of his life, Frazier said her husband had vivid memories of flying 67 combat missions in the Army Air Force during World War II. While he worked in civilian life after his discharge, he returned to uniform late in life.

“My husband belonged to the United States Cavalry Association, which used to hold a big parade downtown,” said Frazier. “They were quite a large group, and they did a lot for the city at the time.”

Being able to volunteer in a service organization while enjoying the outdoors and learning to work with horses was something Frazier said her husband enjoyed.

“He liked horses, but he’d never had a horse in his life until then,” said Frazier.

While missed by family and friends, Frazier said her husband wouldn’t have wanted to seek out fame.

“We just lived a normal life,” said Frazier.