Denzil Olton Cottrell, 64, of Fort Stockton, passed away on January 11, in Odessa, Texas.

Visitation will be Friday, January 17 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Heritage Funeral Home of the Big Bend. Graveside funeral services will be held Saturday, January 18 at 10:00 a.m., at East Hill Cemetery, Fort Stockton, Texas, with Rev. Dr. Jim Miles officiating.

Denzil was born July 25, 1960, in Fort Stockton to Travis and Shirley Cottrell. He attended school in Fort Stockton and graduated from Fort Stockton High School in 1978. He played baritone in the Pride of Pantherland Band. Following high school, Denzil served in the US Navy until 1982. He was stationed in Hawaii on the USS Richard S. Edwards and worked as a boiler technician.

Following the Navy, Denzil worked at Fort Stockton Machine Shop and Big A Auto Parts as a machinist. He later worked for Compressor Systems Inc and SRS Compressors as a compressor mechanic field foreman. Denzil was also a volunteer EMT with the Fort Stockton EMS for 8 years.

Denzil was preceded in death by his father, Travis Cottrell; and by his grandparents, Connie and Ova Cottrell; and Charles and Neva Croker.

He leaves behind his wife of 41 years, Melvina (Molly) Cottrell, of Fort Stockton; mother Shirley Cottrell of Fort Stockton; daughter Amanda Harvey and husband Cortney of Fort Worth; daughter Kimberly Cottrell of Fort Stockton; brother Brooks Cottrell and wife Jana Stout of Arlington; and four grandchildren: Kyra and Piper Arias of Fort Stockton; and Kailey and Aiden Harvey of Fort Worth. Pallbearers will be Brooks Cottrell, William Stoner, James Stoner, Cortney Harvey, Marcus Chavez, and James Thornton.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to The First Presbyterian Church of Fort Stockton, or The US Navy Memorial, 701 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC, 20004 (www.navymemorial.org).

The family wishes to thank the doctors, nurses, and staff at the Fort Stockton VA, Pecos County Memorial Hospital, and Medical Center Hospital for their care.