Larry Joe Petroff

Larry Petroff, 76, of Watkinsville, Georgia, passed away on November 17, 2021 after a long, courageous battle with cancer.  Larry was born on May 25, 1945, to Helen and Frank Petroff in Little Rock, Arkansas.  He was the oldest child in a family of five brothers.  Larry’s family lived in Erie, Pennsylvania, and several cities in the Midwest before they settled back in Arkansas.  After serving in the Vietnam War, Larry returned to Arkansas to complete college.  He remained there until his career took him to Atlanta where he met his wife, Kay.

Larry and Kay lived in the Atlanta area for many years and raised their daughters, Mary and Julie, there.  After his job took him to Chicago, IL, and then Dallas, TX, Larry and Kay returned to Georgia and made Athens home.

Larry enjoyed a good book, a good laugh and meeting new people.  Retirement provided Larry the opportunity to devote more time to his lifelong hobby of photography.  He took photography classes at North Georgia Technical College and enrolled in many photography workshops.  He regularly photographed events around town, his grandchildren and flowers.

Larry had a career in engineering and retired after 30 years with Performance Pipe, a division of Chevron Phillips Chemical Company.  A graduate of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock where he received a degree in mathematics, Larry also held master’s degrees in civil engineering from the University of Arkansas and in geotechnical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Larry is survived by his siblings David, Danny and Tommy Petroff, his wife Kay Petroff and his children Mary Havick, and her husband Steven, and Julia Presuel, and her husband Luis. His grandchildren are Cash and Harper Havick and Alex, Andy and Kitty Presuel.

The family requests in lieu of flowers contributions may be donated to:  Water for People (waterforpeople.org) or Food Bank of Northeast Georgia (foodbanknega.org).

Lord and Stephens Funeral Home, WEST, Watkinsville, is in charge of arrangements. www.lordandstephens.com