Charles Franklin Luter

Charles Franklin Luter passed away at the age of 80 at his home in Paragould, Arkansas on March 14, 2019 .He was born February 15, 1939 in Pontiac, Michigan. After moving around as a child ,he landed in Biggers, Arkansas, He would spend all his adult life in Arkansas He graduated from Biggers High School then earned a Business Administration degree from Arkansas State University in 1966. It was there that he met his wife of 57 years, Kay Kyle Luter.

He moved to Tyronza, Arkansas and began a very successful banking career at Tyronza Bank (now First Delta Bank) where he became the youngest bank president in Arkansas at the age of 25. He remained at Tyronza Bank from 1963-1992.After becoming bank president,he attended the LSU School of Banking.

He continued his banking career as chairman of the First Delta Bank of Marked Tree and Tyronza and served on the Board of Directors of The Liberty Bank of Arkansas. He was also past-president of the Arkansas Community Bankers Association. He never forgot the important role his alma mater, Arkansas State University, played in his numerous successes and was a long-standing supporter of the university.

In 1999, he was named Distinguished Alumnus by the ASU Alumni Association. He was past-president of the Indian Club, now known as the Red Wolves Foundation, the fund-raising arm of Arkansas State Athletics.

In 2008, Charles and Kay made a donation to fund the Charles F Luter Family Academic Success Center on the ASU campus.The center is an advanced athletic academic facility that houses computer labs,study areas, tutorial rooms, and staff. In 2011,he was appointed by then governor Mike Beebe to the Board of Trustees of Arkansas State University, serving a 5-year term. He was past-president of the Paragould hamber of Commerce and the Tyronza and Paragould Rotary Clubs.He was also a member of the Paragould First United Methodist Church.


He is preceded in death by his father Emil Leroy Luter, his mother Rose Ella Dunn Luter, and his brother Richard Lee Luter.
He is survived by his wife Kay and their children Nancy Luter Becker and son-in-law Ken Becker of Mountain View , Ca, Charles Franklin "Chuck" Luter of San Francisco, Ca, and Warren "Chip" Luter and daughter-in-law Allison Luter of Memphis, TN as well as their granddaughters Liza, Ella, and Katherine. Also, he is survived by his brother Larry Leroy Luter of Tucson, AZ and sister-in-law Nancy Potter Luter.

Visitation will be held from 5-7 p.m. on Monday, March 18th at Heath Funeral Home .
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m.on Tuesday, March 19 at Paragould First United Methodist Church. In lieu of donations, the family requests donations in his memory be made to Mission Outreach and The Whitt House.

online tributes at www.heathfuneralhome.com.