Mathis Terry of Highland Mills, N.Y., entered into rest on Monday, July 6, 2026. He was 78.
The son of the late Mathis Holmes and Ruthie Terry, he was born on March 1, 1948 in McBean, Ga.
He is survived by his spouse, Beryl E. Terry; children Ijahi J. Terry; Asha Z. Terry; grandchild, Koda Apollo; Godchild, Natalie Denton; niece, Tawanna; nephews, Ken Holmes and Russell Burden; sister-in-law, Elizabeth Burden; surrogate children, Sharon Liefden and O’Neil Denton; surrogate Godchild, Nicole Liefden; host of cousins from Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Florida, Alabama, New York and Minnesota.
He grew up in Georgia where he was raised by his great grandmother Mat Lee Terry, until he was 14 years old. Once in New York, he went to Junior High School 35 in Brooklyn, N.Y., and lived with his mom. He eventually went on to Boys High. He enlisted and was drafted at 18 years of age into the United States Army. While in the army, he was first stationed in Fort Dix then to Fort Ord in California. He served active duty in Vietnam from May 22, 1968 until May 21, 1970. After Vietnam he lived in Salinas, Calif., where he attended Fresno State. He was the first coach in Salinas, Calif., to have a girl play on a boys’ soccer team.
After returning to New York in 1974, he married his wife, Beryl on Sept. 28, 1974. They spent the next five years, traveling off and on, visiting the west coast and Canada, working at a home for troubled teens in Manhattan. In 1979, he became a father to a son followed by the birth of his daughter in 1982. In 1993, Mathis and family relocated to Central Valley, N.Y. He continued to commute to Brooklyn, Manhattan and Long Island City before retiring in 2010. Shortly after retiring, he helped take care of his grandchild Koda Apollo. He became a neighborhood favorite and a friend to everyone he met. He was known for his storytelling, love of sports, positive energy and strong belief in family. He will be greatly missed by everyone.
Memorial visitation will be held on Tuesday, July 14 from 9-11 a.m. at T.S. Purta Funeral Home, 22 Glenmere Avenue, Florida, NY 10921. With a memorial service starting at 11 a.m.
Burial of his ashes will be held in the Orange County Veteran’s Memorial Cemetery, 111 Craigville Road, Goshen, NY 10924.
Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the T.S. Purta Funeral Home.To send a condolence online, please go to www.purtafuneralhome.com.