Rex Kirby was born in Winona, Texas, August 4, 1937 to Audrie and Ruby Kirby, as the middle child of three, with Shelby being the oldest, and Monroe the youngest, who always looked up to his older brother. From 1943 to 1955, he attended and graduated from Rice Elementary, Hogg Junior High, and Tyler High. In 1956 he earned a degree in Accounting from Tyler Commercial College, and in 1959 he graduated from Tyler Junior College.
When Rex wasn't in school, starting at 15 years old, he was working to put himself through school. Some of his employers were Brookshires, Anton's Records, Acme Machinery, Gary's Pharmacy, Fuller's Restaurant, Glo-Flame Butane, and The Bottle Shop in Austin. While working at Fuller's Restaurant, Rex said, "as a soda jerk I made more Banana Splits than anyone else in Texas I believe." Rex was a relentless and tireless worker at whatever he put his hands to, and he took this with him when he transitioned to Austin for more education. In his own words, he said, "I left Smith Co in the summer of 1960 in my 1954 Chevy headed to the University of Texas with a roadmap to Austin, a few clothes, $30 cash, and a tank of gas…got a motel room for $6.00 a night for a couple of days until I found a job sweeping floors, stocking shelves and loading the beer coolers in The Bottle Shop on Red River Street."
He lived in the Tyler/East Texas area all of his 85 years, except for his time of study at the University of Texas in Austin, where he completed his undergraduate studies, and finally graduating with his Doctorate of Jurisprudence in 1965. He would regularly and proudly tell his oldest son, who was born in 1965, that he had been "practicing law for as long as he had been alive." Rex practiced law for 58 years!
Practicing Law was something that Rex not only loved to do, but excelled at. When Rex was working for Weldon Holcomb in Tyler, one of his briefs went up on appeal to the US Supreme Court. While there were other notable accomplishments, probably his greatest was frequently serving an untold number of clients who were without the means to pay exorbitant attorney's fees.
While serving as an Associate District Attorney in the Smith county courthouse under Bill Coats, Rex met and fell in love with a feisty secretary named Betty Fatheree (Creekmore), who happened to make the office coffee her way. The unintended spark came from Betty. One morning when Rex came late to work, he asked Betty to make another pot of coffee since it was empty. Without missing a beat, Betty clearly let Rex know that he would need to make his own fresh pot of coffee since he was too late for the community pot that she made. This spark led to Rex bravely marrying Betty in 1971 as a single mom, and in so doing, promptly became the dad of two young sons. In 1973, they were so excited to add a third son! When Betty unexpectedly passed away in 1997, that broke Rex's heart, leaving an irreplaceable void in his life.
Over the years, outside of practicing law and raising sons, Rex loved to keep in touch with his roots and dream a better dream through gardening-figs and blueberries especially, doing loads of genealogical family research and organizing family reunions, restoring forgotten cemeteries, regularly contributing to FindaGrave, and taking care of all kinds of animals, like chickens, rabbits, birds, bees, horses, cows, etc.
On Friday, February 24, 2023, after his battle with cancer had come to an end, Rex quietly and peacefully passed away in the presence of a praying grandson. He is survived by his sons and their wives, Randy and Jessi Kirby, John and Danette Fatheree, and Darren and Stephanie Kirby; thirteen grandchildren, three great grandchildren; his brother and his wife, Monroe and Regina Kirby; three nephews, and four nieces.
Obit From Jackson Burks Walker Tippitt Funeral Home, Tyler,TX.
When Rex wasn't in school, starting at 15 years old, he was working to put himself through school. Some of his employers were Brookshires, Anton's Records, Acme Machinery, Gary's Pharmacy, Fuller's Restaurant, Glo-Flame Butane, and The Bottle Shop in Austin. While working at Fuller's Restaurant, Rex said, "as a soda jerk I made more Banana Splits than anyone else in Texas I believe." Rex was a relentless and tireless worker at whatever he put his hands to, and he took this with him when he transitioned to Austin for more education. In his own words, he said, "I left Smith Co in the summer of 1960 in my 1954 Chevy headed to the University of Texas with a roadmap to Austin, a few clothes, $30 cash, and a tank of gas…got a motel room for $6.00 a night for a couple of days until I found a job sweeping floors, stocking shelves and loading the beer coolers in The Bottle Shop on Red River Street."
He lived in the Tyler/East Texas area all of his 85 years, except for his time of study at the University of Texas in Austin, where he completed his undergraduate studies, and finally graduating with his Doctorate of Jurisprudence in 1965. He would regularly and proudly tell his oldest son, who was born in 1965, that he had been "practicing law for as long as he had been alive." Rex practiced law for 58 years!
Practicing Law was something that Rex not only loved to do, but excelled at. When Rex was working for Weldon Holcomb in Tyler, one of his briefs went up on appeal to the US Supreme Court. While there were other notable accomplishments, probably his greatest was frequently serving an untold number of clients who were without the means to pay exorbitant attorney's fees.
While serving as an Associate District Attorney in the Smith county courthouse under Bill Coats, Rex met and fell in love with a feisty secretary named Betty Fatheree (Creekmore), who happened to make the office coffee her way. The unintended spark came from Betty. One morning when Rex came late to work, he asked Betty to make another pot of coffee since it was empty. Without missing a beat, Betty clearly let Rex know that he would need to make his own fresh pot of coffee since he was too late for the community pot that she made. This spark led to Rex bravely marrying Betty in 1971 as a single mom, and in so doing, promptly became the dad of two young sons. In 1973, they were so excited to add a third son! When Betty unexpectedly passed away in 1997, that broke Rex's heart, leaving an irreplaceable void in his life.
Over the years, outside of practicing law and raising sons, Rex loved to keep in touch with his roots and dream a better dream through gardening-figs and blueberries especially, doing loads of genealogical family research and organizing family reunions, restoring forgotten cemeteries, regularly contributing to FindaGrave, and taking care of all kinds of animals, like chickens, rabbits, birds, bees, horses, cows, etc.
On Friday, February 24, 2023, after his battle with cancer had come to an end, Rex quietly and peacefully passed away in the presence of a praying grandson. He is survived by his sons and their wives, Randy and Jessi Kirby, John and Danette Fatheree, and Darren and Stephanie Kirby; thirteen grandchildren, three great grandchildren; his brother and his wife, Monroe and Regina Kirby; three nephews, and four nieces.
Obit From Jackson Burks Walker Tippitt Funeral Home, Tyler,TX.
Rex Kirby was born in Winona, Texas, August 4, 1937 to Audrie and Ruby Kirby, as the middle child of three, with Shelby being the oldest, and Monroe the youngest, who always looked up to his older brother. From 1943 to 1955, he attended and graduated from Rice Elementary, Hogg Junior High, and Tyler High. In 1956 he earned a degree in Accounting from Tyler Commercial College, and in 1959 he graduated from Tyler Junior College.
When Rex wasn't in school, starting at 15 years old, he was working to put himself through school. Some of his employers were Brookshires, Anton's Records, Acme Machinery, Gary's Pharmacy, Fuller's Restaurant, Glo-Flame Butane, and The Bottle Shop in Austin. While working at Fuller's Restaurant, Rex said, "as a soda jerk I made more Banana Splits than anyone else in Texas I believe." Rex was a relentless and tireless worker at whatever he put his hands to, and he took this with him when he transitioned to Austin for more education. In his own words, he said, "I left Smith Co in the summer of 1960 in my 1954 Chevy headed to the University of Texas with a roadmap to Austin, a few clothes, $30 cash, and a tank of gas…got a motel room for $6.00 a night for a couple of days until I found a job sweeping floors, stocking shelves and loading the beer coolers in The Bottle Shop on Red River Street."
He lived in the Tyler/East Texas area all of his 85 years, except for his time of study at the University of Texas in Austin, where he completed his undergraduate studies, and finally graduating with his Doctorate of Jurisprudence in 1965. He would regularly and proudly tell his oldest son, who was born in 1965, that he had been "practicing law for as long as he had been alive." Rex practiced law for 58 years!
Practicing Law was something that Rex not only loved to do, but excelled at. When Rex was working for Weldon Holcomb in Tyler, one of his briefs went up on appeal to the US Supreme Court. While there were other notable accomplishments, probably his greatest was frequently serving an untold number of clients who were without the means to pay exorbitant attorney's fees.
While serving as an Associate District Attorney in the Smith county courthouse under Bill Coats, Rex met and fell in love with a feisty secretary named Betty Fatheree (Creekmore), who happened to make the office coffee her way. The unintended spark came from Betty. One morning when Rex came late to work, he asked Betty to make another pot of coffee since it was empty. Without missing a beat, Betty clearly let Rex know that he would need to make his own fresh pot of coffee since he was too late for the community pot that she made. This spark led to Rex bravely marrying Betty in 1971 as a single mom, and in so doing, promptly became the dad of two young sons. In 1973, they were so excited to add a third son! When Betty unexpectedly passed away in 1997, that broke Rex's heart, leaving an irreplaceable void in his life.
Over the years, outside of practicing law and raising sons, Rex loved to keep in touch with his roots and dream a better dream through gardening-figs and blueberries especially, doing loads of genealogical family research and organizing family reunions, restoring forgotten cemeteries, regularly contributing to FindaGrave, and taking care of all kinds of animals, like chickens, rabbits, birds, bees, horses, cows, etc.
On Friday, February 24, 2023, after his battle with cancer had come to an end, Rex quietly and peacefully passed away in the presence of a praying grandson. He is survived by his sons and their wives, Randy and Jessi Kirby, John and Danette Fatheree, and Darren and Stephanie Kirby; thirteen grandchildren, three great grandchildren; his brother and his wife, Monroe and Regina Kirby; three nephews, and four nieces.
Obit From Jackson Burks Walker Tippitt Funeral Home, Tyler,TX.
When Rex wasn't in school, starting at 15 years old, he was working to put himself through school. Some of his employers were Brookshires, Anton's Records, Acme Machinery, Gary's Pharmacy, Fuller's Restaurant, Glo-Flame Butane, and The Bottle Shop in Austin. While working at Fuller's Restaurant, Rex said, "as a soda jerk I made more Banana Splits than anyone else in Texas I believe." Rex was a relentless and tireless worker at whatever he put his hands to, and he took this with him when he transitioned to Austin for more education. In his own words, he said, "I left Smith Co in the summer of 1960 in my 1954 Chevy headed to the University of Texas with a roadmap to Austin, a few clothes, $30 cash, and a tank of gas…got a motel room for $6.00 a night for a couple of days until I found a job sweeping floors, stocking shelves and loading the beer coolers in The Bottle Shop on Red River Street."
He lived in the Tyler/East Texas area all of his 85 years, except for his time of study at the University of Texas in Austin, where he completed his undergraduate studies, and finally graduating with his Doctorate of Jurisprudence in 1965. He would regularly and proudly tell his oldest son, who was born in 1965, that he had been "practicing law for as long as he had been alive." Rex practiced law for 58 years!
Practicing Law was something that Rex not only loved to do, but excelled at. When Rex was working for Weldon Holcomb in Tyler, one of his briefs went up on appeal to the US Supreme Court. While there were other notable accomplishments, probably his greatest was frequently serving an untold number of clients who were without the means to pay exorbitant attorney's fees.
While serving as an Associate District Attorney in the Smith county courthouse under Bill Coats, Rex met and fell in love with a feisty secretary named Betty Fatheree (Creekmore), who happened to make the office coffee her way. The unintended spark came from Betty. One morning when Rex came late to work, he asked Betty to make another pot of coffee since it was empty. Without missing a beat, Betty clearly let Rex know that he would need to make his own fresh pot of coffee since he was too late for the community pot that she made. This spark led to Rex bravely marrying Betty in 1971 as a single mom, and in so doing, promptly became the dad of two young sons. In 1973, they were so excited to add a third son! When Betty unexpectedly passed away in 1997, that broke Rex's heart, leaving an irreplaceable void in his life.
Over the years, outside of practicing law and raising sons, Rex loved to keep in touch with his roots and dream a better dream through gardening-figs and blueberries especially, doing loads of genealogical family research and organizing family reunions, restoring forgotten cemeteries, regularly contributing to FindaGrave, and taking care of all kinds of animals, like chickens, rabbits, birds, bees, horses, cows, etc.
On Friday, February 24, 2023, after his battle with cancer had come to an end, Rex quietly and peacefully passed away in the presence of a praying grandson. He is survived by his sons and their wives, Randy and Jessi Kirby, John and Danette Fatheree, and Darren and Stephanie Kirby; thirteen grandchildren, three great grandchildren; his brother and his wife, Monroe and Regina Kirby; three nephews, and four nieces.
Obit From Jackson Burks Walker Tippitt Funeral Home, Tyler,TX.
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