Walter Lee McBurnett was born May 10, 1893 in Mary Lee, Alabama to Jefferson McGee McBurnett and Sarah Anne Elizabeth King McBurnett. He was one of 13 children. Seeking better soil, the family moved to east Texas when Lee was a child. As a youngster, he devised a method to pipe water to the family home so his mother wouldn’t have to carry water from the well.

In east Texas he worked at a rail road station. Lee also worked as a bookkeeper for a lumber company in Sour Lake. While at the lumber company, he foiled a would-be robber by calmly tossing ink in the face of the gunman from the ink well sitting on his desk.

It was during his time at the lumber company that he received his draft notice to report for duty for service into WWI. He had approximately 30 minutes to get to the train station – which he did – leaving his new model T at the train station. In 1968, Lee and his good friend & son-in-law, Pryor Parks, went back to Sour Lake, Texas (as a hoot) to report a stolen model T from 50 years earlier.

During WWI, Lee served as paymaster for the 23rd Company of the Corps of Engineers is France. After the war, he married Marian Elva Lee from Bryan, Texas on December 14, 1920 and began farming in Nueces County along with his brother, Dwynell McGee McBurnett. Later, they were joined in the farming enterprise by Lee’s son David Lee McBurnett. Together they grew mostly cotton and milo.

Lee McBurnett was a prominent community leader. He had been on the board of directors of the local cotton gin, he was a past member of the school board at Petronila, a past member of the Robstown City Council, and was past master and member in good standing of the Robstown Masonic Lodge Number 1062 AF&AM. He was a 33rd Degree Mason; a member of the San Antonio Consistory Number 5, and a member of the Coastal Bend Scottish Rite Club of Corpus Christi.

He liked Travis-Club cigars and an occasional beer while playing golf. He loved playing golf and made several holes-in-one.

Lee died at home in the arms of his wife, Marian, at 12:55 AM, Tuesday March 24, 1970 after a brief illness. He died of a heart attack, one of many in his lifetime – the result of Spanish Flu of 1918. He was 76 years old.

He was a kind and loving man known widely for his generosity and life-long reputation for helping others. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him.

Funeral services were held Wednesday, March 25, 1970 at 3:00 PM at First Baptist Church in Robstown, Texas with Rev. J.J. Wilson, pastor, officiating. Internment was at Robstown Memorial Park under the direction of Robstown Funeral Home.

At the time of his death he was survived by his wife, Marian Elva; his daughter, Marinel Dwynell (Mrs. Pryor) Parks of Texas City, Texas; a son, David Lee McBurnett of Robstown; one sister, Beatrice (Mrs. Charles) Britton of Robstown; seven grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. Most of the grandchildren and great-grandchildren are named after Lee McBurnett in some form or another.

Pallbearers were Jim Sam Howze, Joe Cotton, James Williams III, Jimmy Tiller, Roland Moses and Vance Vannoy.

In lieu if flowers, the family requested contributions to the Heart Fund. (By Marilee Dwynell Parks Stripling)