Obit of Killebrew, James Robert - Okmulgee County, Oklahoma Submitted by: Gene Phillips 29 Nov 2009 Return to Okmulgee County Archives: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/okmulgee/okmulgee.html ===================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ===================================================================== ::Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery--Dallas TX Killebrew, James Robert James Robert Killebrew, FAIA PE, 87, an architectural engineer at D/FW Airport, passed away Friday, Dec. 30, 2005. Graveside service: 10 a.m. Wednesday in Dallas–Fort Worth National Cemetery, with full military honors. James was born Dec. 10, 1918, in Okmulgee, Okla. He served in the U.S. Navy as a naval aviator in the Pacific theater from 1941 to 1945 with the rank of lieutenant commander. He was a commanding officer in the Naval Reserve Training Center and Officer School from 1951 to 1976 and retired at the rank of captain at age 60. He graduated from the University of Texas with degrees in architecture and engineering in 1949. He settled in Wichita Falls and opened his own firm, Killebrew Associates. A key achievement in Wichita Falls was the Midwestern University Physical Education Building. He was a registered architect in Texas, Colorado, Tennessee, Arkansas, Georgia, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Indiana. He was president of the North Central Texas chapter of Texas Society of Professional Engineers. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) recognized him as a Fellow in 1975. He was an elder and a choir member for the First Christian Church from 1979-81. In 1992, he joined DFW Airport as a structural inspector and structural engineer. His notable accomplishments were the design input and structural inspection of: the state-of-the-art rental car facility, numerous parking garages, the "crown jewel" of the people movers, Skylink, and the new Airport Emergency Operations Center, which is scheduled to be operational in the spring of 2006. He loved painting, singing and fishing, and considered himself a country gentleman gardener. His retirement plans were always eminent, but his love for work was too strong to give up. He worked the day before he fell ill. Survivors: His wife of 15 years, Emma Herrington Killebrew; her sons, Bobby Fuston and his wife, Debbie, of Wilmington, N.C., Patrick Fuston and his wife, Linda, of Hamburg, Iowa, Rodney Fuston and his wife, Melanie, of Carlsbad, N.M.; grandchildren, Amber, Autumn, Tiffannie, Rowdy and Abigail; daughter, Janice Killebrew VandenBrink and her husband, Randy, of San Francisco, Calif.; and grandchildren, Christopher and Evan. Published in the Star-Telegram on 1/4/2006. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to Okmulgee County Archives: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/okmulgee/okmulgee.html