Garry Cole

Asheville – Garry Leslie Cole, 75, passed away Thursday, January 19, 2023, after a courageous battle with ALS.

A native of Buncombe County, he was a son of the late George F. Cole and Minnie Lee Ingram Cole, and was also preceded in death by his brother, Rex Gerald Cole; brother-in-law, Donald Boone and sister-in-law, Barbara Boone.

He was a 1965 graduate of Erwin High School and while in school, he started as a volunteer for the West Buncombe Fire Department and later was a member of the Board of Directors. He was a US Army Vietnam veteran, and after returning from Vietnam, he served 33 years with Bell South as a Telephone Repairman. He enjoyed traveling in his RV and the last trip he made was out west to the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest.

Surviving are his wife of 48 years, Mary Lou Boone Cole; sister, Judy Cole Mundy and husband Lonnie; brother, Richard Eugene Cole and wife Georgia; sisters-in-law, Annie Lee Cole and Katherine Revis and husband Rex; brothers-in-law, David Boone and wife Lorena and Daniel Boone; nieces and nephews, Angel Cahill and husband John, Jeff Cole and wife Karen, Ronda Brown, Jason Revis and wife Kimberly and his 17 year old cat, Tabitha.

Funeral services will be held at 3 PM Monday, January 23, 2023 in the chapel of Anders-Rice Funeral Home, with Rev. Garry Rogers officiating. Burial will follow in Sluder Cemetery, with honors provided by West Buncombe Fire Department Honor Guard.

The family will receive friends from 2 to 3 PM Monday prior to services at the funeral home.

Flowers are welcomed, or donations may be made to: ASPCA, PO Box 96929, Washington, DC 20090-6929.

A special thank you to our special home care nurses, Anita Etherton and Laura Jolly.

Anders-Rice Funeral Home is honored to serve the Cole family.