Obituaries

Bob Axelson

Bob Axelson, 81, died Nov. 21, 2002. He worked 31 years as reporter, city editor, managing editor and editor for The Orange Leader. He started in 1954 after working for the Huntsville (Ala.) Times, Commercial Appeal in Memphis and Norman (Okla.) Transcript. He retired in 1985 when the Leader sold to Cox Communications.

Vickie R. Bolen

Vickie R. Bolen, 33, died Nov. 20, 2002, after an early-morning crash on her paper route for the Sherman/Denison Herald Democrat. She was delivering morning papers on Spur 503 when her Toyota pickup left the roadway, struck a concrete pillar and burst into flames.

James Owen Brown

James Owen “Jimmy” Brown, 82, died Oct. 31, 2002, in Jefferson after a lengthy illness. After retiring from the Air Force in 1959, he began a career as a reporter for the Gladewater Mirror where he covered stories and football for decades. His column “Making Waves” was published for more than 30 years in the Gladewater Mirror, Gilmer Mirror and Jefferson Jimplecute.

James B. Clemons

James B. Clemons, 71, died Nov. 19, 2002. He worked at the Gatesville Messenger for several years and later became part-owner. He also owned and operated Gatesville Printing and Office Supply for 22 years, retiring in 1977.

Jimmie Cox

Jimmie Cox, 74, died Nov. 23, 2002, in Grand Saline after a long illness. He began his career as reporter at the Waco News-Tribune in 1951 and starting in the mid-1950s spent 21 years at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram as copy editor, editorial writer and editorial page editor. In 1978 he joined an evangelistic association and was executive editor until his death.

James Edmonson

James Leland “Jim” Edmonson, 62, of Port Aransas, died Nov. 18, 2002, after a long battle with cancer. He was a journalism and English teacher at Refugio High School in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In late 1980 he became publisher of the Port Aransas South Jetty. In 1982 he went to work for the Port Aransas Independent School District and later became principal at Port Aransas High School.

Jim Garner

Jim Garner, 81, died Dec. 6, 2002, in his home in San Marcos. He was a former Buda Free Press columnist and was best known locally for his award-winning column “View From Armadillo Ridge,” which he wrote in the early 1980s. He won TPA’s first place in column writing in 1986. After serving in the U.S. Air Force, Garner worked for the state of Texas.

Harriette Graves

Harriette Graves, 81, a veteran Brownwood Bulletin reporter, died Nov. 17, 2002, in a Dallas hospital.

For 33 years, until her retirement in January 2001, she was a features writer, news reporter and photographer for the Bulletin. For two years prior to joining the staff on April 1, 1966 she was a frequent contributor and free-lancer.

Her trademark was her pair of rhinestone-rimmed glasses that made her easily identifiable. She interviewed President George W. Bush in 1988 during a campaign trip through Brownwood on behalf of his father. A photo of Graves and Bush at a local bridge dedication ceremony later landed in Fortune magazine.

Elma May Huskey

Elma May Huskey, 89, died Nov. 20, 2002, at a Burleson nursing home. She wrote articles for the Albany News, Cisco Press and Breckenridge American for many years until becoming ill.

Carl Hyatt

Carl Hyatt, 85, died Nov. 16, 2002, at Presbyterian Hospital of Commerce. He spent 60 years in newspapers and printing.

He was a former owner of the Commerce Journal and director of the instructional printing facility at Texas A&M University-Commerce where he retired from in 1987. He was raised in the newspaper business and his father was publisher of the Ralls Banner.

He worked for the Waco Tribune-Herald and Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. In 1952 he and Bill Latson bought the Commerce Journal and sold it in 1966 to Harte-Hanks Corp.

William Kathan

William Keith Kathan, 71, died Nov. 5, 2002. After being honorably discharged from the Air Force in 1952, he earned a journalism degree at Southern Methodist University and edited the Park Cities-North Dallas News while at the college.

He began his career with United Press International in New Orleans and later joined the Dallas Times Herald as court and police reporter. He later worked in Washington, D.C., before returning to Texas as wire editor at The Beaumont Enterprise and in 1985 as general manager of The Progress in Anahuac.

Barbara Lee

Barbara Lee, 71, died Nov. 2, 2002, in San Marcos. She was a reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, San Antonio Light and the Denver Post. She wrote five novels, including “Hard on the Road,” for which she received a Pulitzer Prize nomination. Two of her novels won the Mark Twain Award for Fiction.

Walker Lundy

Walker Lundy, 60, died Nov. 23, 2002, after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was a longtime assistant distributing manager for the Texarkana Gazette.

Tas Watson Jr.

Tas Silas Watson Jr., 81 died Nov. 4, 2002, in Fairfield. From 1966-78 he was part-owner of the Fairfield Recorder with Joe Lee Kirgan and held various jobs in other fields. 

James Wesson

James Joseph “Jimmie” Wesson, 79, died Nov. 23, 2002. He had a 50-year career at the Corpus Christi Caller-Times where he was paper carrier, accountant, personnel manager and credit manager.