Thomas Walter Ely III
Thomas Walter Ely III
Oct. 1, 1928 ~ Nov. 20, 2016
Thomas Walter Ely III passed from this life to life eternal on Nov. 20, 2016, in Boerne Texas. He was born on Oct. 1, 1928, in Fairfield, Texas, to Maurine Pyburn and Thomas Walter Ely Jr. Walter graduated from El Campo High School in 1945 and attended Wharton County Junior College and what was then North Texas State College in Denton. His college career was interrupted by his service in the United States Army, serving in Korea. After being honorably discharged, he returned to Denton and completed his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in personnel management, graduating in 1955. He also attended the University of Texas in Austin and was a lifelong fan of the Texas Longhorns.
After college, Walter lived in Dallas, Austin and Anahuac, before returning to El Campo, where he worked for Lack's and Reliable Furniture. In the summer of 1962, he opened Ely Furniture Center, and remained in business until 1987, when he retired and closed the store. While in El Campo, Walter was an active member of the community he loved, serving first on the Board of Trustees of El Campo ISD, and later the El Campo City Council. He was an active member of the First United Methodist Church in El Campo for many years, serving on various boards and committees. He was an active member of the El Campo Rotary Club, and was a past master of El Campo Lodge #918 AF & AM, and participated in other service organizations as well. He also served on the board and later as President of the Southwest Home Furnishings Association.
Upon retirement, he relocated to Austin, and later San Antonio, where he continued to work in the retail furniture business on a part time basis. He was also actively involved in Manchaca United Methodist Church, Coker United Methodist Church in San Antonio and the First United Methodist Church in Boerne as long as his health permitted. He lived his last five years in Boerne, in the care of Town & Country Retirement Center and Cibolo Creek Nursing and Rehab Center. The Ely family is abundantly grateful to the staff of both of those fine facilities for the love and care they showed Walter in his final years.
Walter was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Martha Rose Ely Middleton, and his brother in law, John T. Nicholson. He is survived by his wife, Kay Ely, and his sons John Walter Ely of El Campo and Troy Brod of Columbus. He is also survived by his daughter, Ellen Ely Hibler and her husband Wade of Marble Falls, and his sister Maurine Nicholson of Beaumont. Walter was adored by his two grandsons, Tyler and Jack Brod, and his granddaughter, Hailey Hibler of Kaplan, Louisiana. His great grandson Jordan Fusilier also survives, as well as his sisters and brothers in law, Warren and Vicki Simmons of Montgomery and Janet and Delton Hollmann of Columbus. Walter is also survived by many nieces and nephews and a host of friends. He was a Godly man who never knew a stranger and was loved and admired by many.
Funeral services will be held at Henneke Funeral Home in Columbus, Texas, on Saturday Nov. 26, 2016, at 10 a.m. The Rev. Dr. Harold Burkhardt will officiate. Internment will follow at Oaklawn Memorial Park in El Campo and a reception for friends and family will be held in the fellowship hall of First United Methodist Church in El Campo. In lieu of usual remembrances, the Ely family would ask that all memorial contributions be sent to the Alzheimer's Foundation of America (alzfdn.org).
