Junior F. Adkisson

Junior was born on July 28, 1927 to Louis J. Adkisson and Elizabeth Norene Straley, in Commanche, Texas. The family later moved to the Abilene and Buffalo Gap area where he attended public schools.

Junior met and married his sweetheart, Lura Mae Bowman on December 15, 1945. Their love lasted 72 years. Lura passed away on May 3, 2018. They were married in the home of Junior’s parents (Louis and Lizze Adkisson) with Pastor Campbell officiating the ceremony. Junior has been a member of the Oak

Street Church of Christ at 1389 Oak St., Abilene, TX. for many years.

Junior, in his early years was a race car driver on the circle dirt track on Bell Plains Rd. here in Abilene and the surrounding towns. He was always building some kind of race car including Midget Racers, entering them in car shows and racing them on the track at Tye, TX. He also rebuilt antique 1955-1959 Chevy pickups. His love, Lura, would design the interior and color of each of them. He did all of his own mechanic, paint and body work.

He loved to ride motorcycles and take his family camping with everyone riding, and of course, he was the chief mechanic! Junior and Lura Mae enjoyed touring Canada, California, Oregon, Tennessee, Colorado, Florida, and The Great Smoky Mountains in their motorhomes throughout the years. Junior had always had a love for music, singing, playing the guitar and harmonica with his lovely little wife singing along beside him. Junior loved life and lived every day to the fullest. His world revolved around his sweetheart, Lura, and his family. Nothing made him happier than being surrounded by his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren! He loved to share his life stories and the opportunity to teach them everything he knew.

Junior worked for Central Texas Iron Works for 32 years as a structural steel fabricator. He then went on to work for his son Ricky, at Adkisson Masonry, for about 12 years, building houses and laying brick. He also worked for Al Hicks as a welding fabricator and Wilder Tire as a front-end specialist and mechanic. He rebuilt his 1957 Chevy pickup into a welding truck and later bought a 1973 one-ton welding truck, working as a welding contractor in the oilfield. However, even after losing his leg and being confined to a power chair, he then began to rebuild old non-working riding lawnmowers, reselling them up until the day of his accident. He especially liked to tinker with the electronics of his power chairs to make them go faster!

Junior was preceded in death by his wife Lura Mae, infant daughter Pamela June, his parents Louis and Elizabeth, two sisters, three brothers, and daughter-in-law, Barbara.

Junior is survived by two sons Ricky Adkisson of Abilene, Perry and wife Kay of Ridgecrest, California; and one daughter, Sandy Miller and husband Rick of Tuscola; 7 Grandchildren: Kyle Miller, Skylor Adkisson, Tammy Adkisson, Angela Pope, Kimberly Davison, Nathaniel Adkisson, Caleb Adkisson; 4 Step-Grandchildren: Wendy Moseley, Candie Atkinson, Tami Lusk, Kim Hair; 30 great- grandchildren; 6 great-great grandchildren; two sisters: Geneva Holt of Abilene and Wanda English of Clyde.

Serving as Pallbearers: Grandsons: Kyle Miller, Skylor Adkisson; Great-Grandsons: Ryker Adkisson, Jarrod Acosta, Levi Smith, Kade Miller. Honorary Pallbearers: Hunter Davison, Gabriel Pope, Andrew Rodriguez, Brayden McDonald and Hunter Crowder.

The family would like to send a special thanks to Dr. Robert Streigler and his nursing staff for all the special care that they gave to our Dad over the years!

Visitation will be held on Monday, September 9, 2019 from 5-7 pm at Elliott-Hamil Garden of Memories, 5701 US Hwy 277 South, Abilene, Texas. A memorial service and celebration of Junior’s life will be held on Tuesday, September 10, 2019 at 10:00 am in the Chapel. Memorial donations may be sent to West Texas Rehabilitation Center, 4601 Hartford, Abilene, Texas 79605. You may view and sign the guestbook at www.elliotthamilfuneralhomes.com.

Love Letter to My Sweetheart

I am writing this letter to the Love of my life, Junior Floyd Adkisson and his birthday is July 28, 1927. He will be 91 on our Anniversary which is December 15th of this year and I will be 89. We were very young when we married. My Popa and Juniors Daddy, Lewis, went to the court house with Junior to get our Marriage License, I didn't have to go.

We married at the home of Juniors Parents (Lizzie and Lewis Adkisson). We didn't have much during those days in 1945 during the depression and the war. We lived in a little 2 room-house. With no running water and no Bathroom. We hauled water from the Banner Creamery down on Oak St and used an outhouse. (And by the way if you don't know what an outhouse is....It is a outside toilet. We didn't have a TV or Radio and I loved to read about True Story and Modern Romance Novels (I have always loved to read) and Junior would go to sleep on my arm every night while I read to him...... of course we didn't need a TV or Radio … We lived on Love in those Days! We later bought land just up the stree and built our home and been there all these years.

We started dating when I was in High school at the age of (14 years old and Junior was 16 years old). Every time we went on a date Junior would ask me to get married. I told him I wanted to finish school, but I didn't. We married (December 15, 1945). Our first baby (Ricky) was born on March 2, 1947 and then here comes my little girl (Sandy) almost 2 years later (born December 28, 1948). Hazel (my sister) kept them one time we went on a 4-day trip. She said Ricky was not any trouble at all, but Sandy was a little Meddler. She said she opened every dresser drawer in the house and meddled in everything she had (you wouldn't believe she did all of that)! She just wanted to see what were in those drawers. Ha. We lost a little girl when Ricky was 7 and Sandy was 5 (she was stillborn-Pamela June). Then after many years (Ricky was 17 and Sandy 15) we had our second little boy, Perry (September 20, 1965)

Junior was a race car driver. He used to build the hopped-up cars and we would go to the track with him. He raced on the track on Bell Plains Rd here in Abilene and lots of the surrounding towns. I sure was afraid he would get hurt. He won lots of Races. I would park the car by the fence when (Sandy was a Year old and Rick was 3 years old. I would put Ricky on the Hood of the Car and he would Holler (Come on 49) - He liked to see his Daddy drive his Race Car. (the Number on Junior Race Car was 49). The number hasn't been retired … his grandson Kyle has Raced his motorcycle with that number.

When Perry was about 15 years old he and his Daddy build a little Midget Race Car. You could ride in and they entered it in car shows and raced it at the track at Tye.

When we got a little older and had a few dollars to spare. We bought us a Motor Home and "our first long vacation was to go to Canada. We saw lots of beautiful sights, especially Niagara Falls. We took John and Jane up there when Donnie married Ellie. We have been to California, Oregon, Tennessee (with Rick and Sandy), Dolly Wood, Yellow Stone National Park, Smokey Mountains, Cumberland Mountains, Carlsbad Caverns, Florida (with Ricky and Linda), Colorado (Pikes Peak … with Howard and Geneva and all the kids. There are a lot more places we have gone but I have forgotten them … We really enjoyed all of our vacations and had so much fun.

Junior worked for Central Texas Iron works for (32 years) as a structural steel fabricator), but he didn't retire there. He worked with Ricky about 12 years building houses. Junior was a good brick and Rock Layer but he was always good at anything he set his mind to do, whether electrician, plumber or etc. After working for Ricky, he started working at Al Hicks as a welding fabricator and Wilder Tire as a Front-End Specialist and Mechanic. He rebuilt his little 1957 PU into a welding truck. He dressed it all up and put his welder on it and bottles of oxygen on either side. He decided to do work for Al Hicks and do contract welding in the oilfield. Later he bought a 1973 one-ton truck and made him a flat bed and all kinds of tools on it. Built big tool boxes on either side of it. Put a grinder on it looked really sharp. Went to work for Dixon Drilling doing contract welding. After that he retired and Restored Old Pickups from Model (57-59). He did all the body work and painting by himself. I helped him pick out the color scheme for them. I had a good eye for colors and I would pick out fabric for seat covers, mats etc. We would go to lots of wrecking yards and look for that model Truck parts for good seats etc. After that, we took them to the upholstery man Junior knew. They had lots of styles and colors to choose from. I helped him pick out the styles and colors to match each Pickup. He would sand and get them ready to paint after he had rebuilt the motor. They sure looked good when he finished with them. He made some good extra money selling them. He sold one to a man from Canada. He flew down, spent the night with us and the next day he drove it all the way back to Canada.

One-time Junior asked several of the pickup owners that he had sold them to, to come over and make a movie of them. Some of them came. I think about (7) in all. One man had a speaker, he told all about each one of them and made us a tape of the pickup and driver.

We attended the Little Rock church at Cedar Gap for many years. It was rocked after they built it. Brother Clarence Snodgrass was our Pastor then (baptized me when I was 13). He would hold meetings and week-long Revivals with out of town Preachers with lots of singing and dinners on the grounds. They would always spend the nights with some of the congregation. After that, Oak Street Church of Christ became our church home.

Our three children were and are our life. Junior, I wouldn't trade a minute for the wonderful life I have shared with you, our children and grandchildren. Thank you for being a part of my life for the last 72 years. I have loved to Reminisce about our years together, My Sweetheart!

I Love you now and forever, Lura