Jack Willingham was born November 6, 1940, in Waco, Texas to James Alvin Willingham and Ruth Kathleen Sparks Willingham and passed away February 8, 2022, in Dallas, Texas. On June 6, 1964, he married Sandra Thetford at Axtell Baptist Church in Axtell, Texas. They had three children: Jeffrey Lynn Willingham, Ann Larlene Willingham Akins, and Alisa Kathleen Willingham. Jack will be buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Waco, Texas beside his daughter, Alisa.
Jack grew up on the county line between McLennan and Limestone Counties on a dairy farm with his older sister, Nelda, and younger sister, Carolyn. At an early age Jack made profession of faith in Jesus at Watt Baptist Church. He attended grade school at Watt and graduated from Mart High School in 1958. He was a member of the 1957 football state co-championship team.
Jack loved heavy equipment from an early age and started running bulldozers in his teens. He started college in the fall of 1958 at Tarleton State and finished with a Bachelor of Science in 1965 from Sam Houston State, going to school a semester or year, then working a semester or year, depending on available funds. Jack started working for Brown & Root Inc in 1966 helping build electrical power plants in Savoy, Waco, Mt Pleasant, and North Platte, NE. Then he moved into overseeing the construction of several lignite coal draglines at Mt Pleasant and Tatum. His last 20 years were spent helping Priefert Ranch Equipment in Mt Pleasant. Jack loved his work and the people he got to know and enjoy. He was always looking for his next new friend.
Jack was a metal craftsman extraordinaire building stainless steel belt buckles, decorative windmills, barbecue grills and smokers, and several trailers. He restored a red 1966 Ford Mustang for his twin daughters’ high school senior year. Then he turned to restoring several antique John Deere tractors and developed great friendships in the Lubbock/Abernathy area where he would show his latest finished tractor annually. Jack loved talking to Nelda every day about gardening, recipes and preserving food, especially his beloved pear and fig preserves. The Willingham family were founding members of Trinity Baptist Church in Mt. Pleasant in 1989 and Jack highly valued those relationships.
Jack is survived by his wife of 57 years, Sandra, son Jeff, and daughter Ann, sister Nelda W Minchew and Carol W McCaghren. He was preceded in death by his parents, an infant brother, James, and his daughter, Alisa.
Graveside services will be held on Friday, February 11, 2022 at 11:30 a.m. at the Oakwood Cemetery in Waco, Texas. A celebration of life service will be held, Sunday, February 13, 2022 at 2:00 p.m. at the chapel of Coker-Mathews Funeral Home, with Rev. Brad Cardwell and Rev. Scott Sutton officiating.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations made be made to your favorite charity.