William Malone

William Marshall Malone, age 88 of Beeville, Texas, passed away peacefully on August 1, 2020.

Bill was born on January 23, 1932, in San Antonio. He was the son of Grace Fox Malone of Blanconia, Texas, and Marshall Andrew Malone of Shreveport, Louisiana. They met while both working at Standard Oil in Tampico, Mexico, in the 1920s. Bill spent his first 6 years living in Mexico, returning to Texas in 1937 with his mother after his father’s death from malaria.

Bill attended St. Edwards Military Academy in Austin, Texas, and, upon his graduation at the age of 18, he joined the U.S. Army achieving the rank of Sergeant Major, serving in Army Intelligence in Naples, Italy, during the Korean Conflict. After his honorable discharge from the Army, he returned home to attend college at Texas A&M University, graduating in 1959 with a degree in Chemical Engineering.

After college, while working at Celanese near Kingsville, Bill met and married the love of his life, Judy. They shared a long, happy marriage and just celebrated their 59th wedding anniversary on June 10, 2020, while vacationing in Port Aransas, surrounded by their children and grandchildren.

Bill had a sharp intelligence, especially regarding engineering and critical thinking, which made him an invaluable problem solver. This talent also played into his love of tinkering and building things. He built the addition to their house in Kingsville, which only cost him materials and one part of a finger. He earned his pilot’s license and greatly enjoyed his time in the cockpit, his boat, and sports car. In fact, in a now fond memory of Judy’s, he once used her prized electric skillet to do boat repairs, rendering it useless for cooking there after. He would carry that fondness for boating and the water throughout the rest of his life. He fished the waters of Aransas Bay on his beloved boat, which survived Hurricane Harvey intact. Just weeks before his death, he was fishing on that boat with his son, Michael, and grandson, Marshall. He was always truly happy there.

After his stint at Celanese, Bill moved to work for MW Kellogg in Houston, Texas. Then in 1979, Bill made a career move to Saudi Aramco and worked at the Shedgum Gas plant in Saudi Arabia, the largest gas-treating program ever undertaken. Bill and Judy spent the next 8 years living in Saudi Arabia and raising their 4 children there. They loved to travel, and the family of 6 traipsed all over Europe and Asia, creating many special memories. Bill had a real passion for SCUBA diving in the Red Sea, and he could be found in those waters at every opportunity. All 4 of his children logged many hours with their dear Dad in the Red Sea. During their time living in Saudi Arabia, Bill and Judy helped to organize Catholic Mass “under the radar” and, in typical Bill fashion; he made the wine, another hobby he picked up along the way.

In 1986, Bill and Judy returned to the United States and soon after they made their way back to Bee County to assume the family ranching business. Bill approached cattle ranching in the same way he did everything else, with passion. He loved to ride horses, work cattle, and build fences. The ranch was a perfect tinkerer’s playground, and he adored the land, always with an eye to the sky, praying for rain. He was a devout Catholic, and in Beeville, he was a faithful member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, where he was a devoted and regular member of the congregation, Knights of Columbus and usher. As a public servant, he volunteered several years as the Chairman of the County Fire Board of Beeville and worked with the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA). As a father, Bill was a volunteer coach for his children’s baseball, soccer, and softball teams. He served as a Cub Scout pack master for years, and later encouraged and mentored his grandson, Rory, to the completion of Eagle Scout, for which he was very proud.

Bill is survived by his wife, Judy Malone; their children, Molly S. Malone and her husband Kenny Savage, Edward Marshall Malone and his wife Lisa Lee Ehrlich, Michael Robert Malone, and Patricia Malone Baker and her husband, Scot. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Caitlin Farmer Brust and her husband Bo, Rory Farmer, Grace Lee Malone, August Marshall Malone, William Tracy Malone, Coryn Lorraine Baker, and Daisy Lee Baker; and his first cousins, Mary Katherine O’Brien and Betty Bauer and their families.

Bill will always be remembered and adored for his boot-like toughness, bull strength, pragmatic intelligence, and quiet wit. He was always the first one to have a chuckle at himself, and his resilience and tenacity followed through to his last breath. He never complained (except for when we did not get enough rain!). It is a certainty that he is tinkering up there in heaven, now that Jesus has called him home. So, farewell to our dear husband, father, Poppy, and friend. The world will not be the same without you, Bill Malone, and your adoring family and friends will sorely miss you.

Visitation will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, August 7, 2020, at Galloway & Sons Funeral Home Chapel with a Rosary to be recited at 7 p.m.

The Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Saturday, August 8, 2020, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. Burial will follow at St. Joseph Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the St. Joseph’s Catholic Church Capital Repairs Fund, 609 E. Gramman, Beeville, TX 78102.