Larry Joe Hamilton

Larry Joe Hamilton, of Indianapolis, Indiana, passed away on August 18, 2026, at the age of 67.

Larry was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on November 8, 1958, to Onnie Lee Hamilton and Linda Louise Hamilton. He was raised in Indianapolis and grew up alongside his brother, James.

Larry attended school through the ninth grade. At an early age, he left school to help his father with the family business, Hamilton and Sons Junking and Scrapping, tearing down buildings, hauling scrap, and learning the value of hard work from his father.

As a child, Larry was adventurous, mischievous, and always looking for something fun to do. He and his brother James spent their days playing outdoors, riding horses, and getting into all kinds of adventures. Larry even had a fascination with real snakes—sometimes bringing them into the house. He was known to occasionally play hooky from school, too, and those childhood stories became memories his family would carry with them for years.

Larry worked at several places throughout his life, including Dobbs at International Foods, Maplehurst, and K&F Industries, where he worked for 12 years as a crane operator. Through those years, he continued working alongside his father in the family junking and scrapping business. After leaving his career as a crane operator, Larry worked for Ray’s Recycling before eventually starting his own junking and scrapping business.

Larry never knew a stranger. He could make a friend wherever he went and had a way of making people feel welcome. He had one of the biggest hearts anyone could have and wore that heart on his sleeve. Although he often hid his emotions and would say he was “good” even when he was hurting inside, the people who knew him best knew how deeply he cared.

Larry was quite the jokester and rarely took life too seriously. He loved to laugh, have fun, and make others laugh with him. He loved his family dearly and had a special love for good food—especially a big pot of chili and pineapple upside-down cake. He enjoyed working out and, at one point in his life, had the physique of a bodybuilder. He loved muscle cars, many different genres of music, and singing.

He also loved Christmas.

But above everything else, Larry loved the Lord.

Larry was raised in a Pentecostal household and attended many churches throughout the west side of Indianapolis, including Faith Chapel, Bread of Life, Word of Life, Life Tabernacle, and Tabernacle of Faith.

His faith was not something he kept to himself. Larry prayed and read his Bible every day. He never passed up an opportunity to talk to someone about God. He passed out flyers encouraging people to repent and get saved, and he loved witnessing to others and sharing his faith. He wanted people to know the Lord and to be saved.

Those who knew Larry will remember some of the questions and sayings that were uniquely him:

“How was church?”

“What did they preach on?”

“What are you having for dinner?”

“Seriously“

Larry’s love, humor, faith, and willingness to talk to anyone will be deeply missed by all who knew him.

Larry is survived by:

His mother, Linda Louise Hamilton;

His brother, James Lee Hamilton; Half-brother, Douglas Eugene Brown;

His wife, Linda L. Hamilton;

His children, Melinda (John) Cripe, Larry (Nikki) Hamilton II, and Brittany (Joel) Shrum;

And his grandchildren, Jacob Cripe, Anthony (Kayla) Hamilton, Lora Hamilton, Kaitlyn Cripe, Mathew Hamilton, Maxel Shrum, Noah Shrum, and Logan Shrum.

He was preceded in death by:

His father, Onnie Lee Hamilton;

His sister, Deborah Kay Hamilton;

His maternal grandparents, Alta Irene Jones and Charlie James Jones;

And his paternal grandparents, Onnie Lee Hamilton and Verna Hamilton.

Services

Visitation: September 5, 2026 at 10:00 a.m.

Funeral Service: September 5, 2026 at 1:00 p.m.

Newcomer Funeral Home

925 E. Hannah Avenue

Indianapolis, Indiana 46227

A Tribute to Our Dad

To our dad, the man we looked up to growing up, you showed us so many things—how to be strong when things got hard, how to laugh and have fun, and how to show kindness to others.

You showed the love of God to others and always had a smile, even when things got tough. But the greatest thing you left with all of us was the importance of being faithful to God and being strong spiritually in the Lord.

We are going to miss the conversations, the laughter, the questions, and all the little things that made you who you were. But we will always keep you in our hearts. We know you’re walking on streets of gold, having the best conversations of all with Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

For Our Dad

I wish we had more time,

more talks, more ordinary days.

Still, I am thankful for your life

and all your simple ways.

Your love is part of who I am.

Your name is part of mine.

I will carry you with pride

until the end of time.

Rest peacefully, Dad.

Until we meet again.