Harold Winfred Lancaster, 79 of Sheridan, died Tuesday. He was born in Sheridan, Arkansas on April 24, 1925, the son of the late Joe and Pauline Speck Lancaster. He attended Sheridan Schools and entered the United States Navy at age 17, exactly one year after the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1942. Following boot camp and diesel engine school, he served the remainder of WWII on a submarine chaser. He participated in the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, and in the search for the USS Thresher which sank in the North Atlantic in 1963. He received numerous letters of commendation. He retired on September 1, 1967 after 20 years in the Navy. He was a Chief Petty Officer and was awarded the Navy Expeditionary Medal; American Theater Medal; World War II Victory Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Ribbon; Navy Occupational Service Medal; National Defense Service Medal and Good Conduct Medal. His name has been entered into the World War II Memorial Registry of Remembrances in Washington, D.C.

Following discharge from military service, he was a Shelter Insurance Agent in Sheridan for 18 years, retiring in 1986. He also served as: President of Sheridan Rotary Club; President of Grant County Chamber of Commerce; Sunday School teacher, Elder, Chairman of Official Board and Elder Emeritus at First Christian Church, Sheridan; and a longtime member of Grant County Democratic Central Committee.

Survivors: Wife : Janice Mayhew Lancaster of Sheridan
Daughter: Carol Batts of Norwich, Connecticut
Granddaughter: Shayna Lancaster of Norfolk, Virginia
Brothers: Jim Lancaster, Bob Lancaster and Bill Lancaster all of Sheridan
Sisters: Nita Webb, Joy Roberts and Betty Fowlkes all of Sheridan.

Funeral will be 10 AM Thursday at Memorial Gardens Funeral Home Chapel in Sheridan. Visitation Wednesday, 5 - 7 PM at the funeral home. Burial at Lost Creek Cemetery in Sheridan. Arrangements by Memorial Gardens Funeral Home in Sheridan. Sign online at www.memorialgardenssheridan.com