It is with great sadness that the family of Carma Drury regrets to announce his passing at the age of 109 years and 8 months.
Carma was born to Clayton and Lilly May Drury in a farmhouse near Ozark Missouri that had neither electricity or running water.
The first time that Carma rode in a car was in 1920 when his family moved to Clovis, California. Carma’s Grandfather was Frank Drury, known as “The Grand Old Man of Clovis.”
Carma was the first in his family to graduate from college (Fresno State College) and in 1936 married a fellow Fresno State graduate, Alice Iantha Zollinger.
They made their home in nearby Madera, where Carma was able to get one of the few jobs available during the depression with the Pacific Gas and Electric Company. He began by digging trenches for gas lines. He worked as a gas mechanic for over 40 years until he retired in 1977.
He and his wife raised three sons, Stanley, Kenneth and Keith (deceased). In 1968, they moved to Merced California where he was the head of the gas utility section for PG&E.
After Alice died in 1980 Carma remarried three years later to Elizabeth (Betty) Hamilton of Merced. In retirement, he stayed active, building grandfather clocks for his sons and family. In 2011, he and his twin sister Cuma celebrated their 100th birthday together.
Carma continued building and repairing things until he was well over 106 years of age. He was always looking for another project to work on.
When he was 106 years old, he moved to live with his son Kenneth and his wife Sandra in Gainesville Florida.
While there he participated in The Centenarian Study at the University of Florida. He continued taking daily walks thru the oak trees there that he loved.
He is survived by sons Stanley of Grass Valley Ca. (Wife Donna, sons Ian (deceased) and Aaron and daughter Desiree), Kenneth of Gainesville Fl. (Wife Sandra and daughters Allison Iuculano (Nicholas Iuculano) and Vanessa. Daughter in-law Carolene (Keith) of Merced Ca. Grandson Timothy Drury of Merced Ca. (Wife Karly, daughter Dorothy, and sons Clayton and Everett) and Grand Daughter in-law Jennifer Worsley of Sacramento Ca. (Daughter Claire Drury)
There will be a service for family at a time yet to be determined at the Clovis Cemetery.