Harry Patton Hewell

Harry Patton Hewell was born on the 20th of February, 1934 in Nixon, Texas to Harry and Mollie Hewell as the oldest of three sons. He had a brilliant intellect, sharp memory, and a charming way that drew people to him. He had creative and imaginative ways of storytelling, with a touch of exaggeration like any good storyteller. Harry loved his time with his family and friends growing up in Nixon and Stockdale and maintained the relationships throughout his life.

With his intellect, Harry was invited to attend Harvard, but ultimately enrolled at The University of Texas at Austin. He excelled at UT and graduated magna cum laude in Economics. It was here that Harry developed his interest in music, singing in the men’s a cappella choir. His mentor at UT, Harry Ransom, who later became President and then Chancellor of the university, encouraged Harry to pursue a career in teaching. Though he did follow this advice later in life, he chose instead to pursue a career in law. After graduating from UT law school, he worked in Washington for Lyndon Baines Johnson which he indicated was quite an experience.

Upon leaving Washington, Harry returned to Texas to work for Standard Oil and eventually was an Assistant Attorney prosecuting Billie Sol Estes for fraud in a case rife with conspiracy theories. Harry then went to work for Walter Mischer, a premier land developer in Houston. While being employed at Mischer, Harry went on sabbatical to pursue his passion for the opera. Though he returned to his work at Mischer soon thereafter, this reflected his sense of adventure. Harry ultimately left Mischer to build residential tract homes in Houston suburbs and higher end townhomes in central Houston which reflected a sense of style and grace that he inherited from his mother. Harry would travel the world coming back with unique pieces of art, textiles and furniture to furnish his townhouses. Unfortunately, this business came to a halt in the mid 1980’s with a collapse in oil prices and the S&L crisis that resulted in a severe downturn in Houston residential real estate.

Before this downturn, Harry had a great life in Houston. He developed a passion for health during this time, passing on voluminous research on vitamins and the aging process to family and friends. As a follower of Michio Kushi, he followed a strict macrobiotic diet before people generally began to focus on healthy eating. He was one of the initial joggers at Memorial Park before it was a popular form of exercise. He was a frequent user of Hank’s Gym and was active in playing rugby during this time. He shared his passion for waterskiing with his nephews with early morning drives to Lake Travis before other boaters could disrupt the “glass” water. These trips were usually concluded with family style barbecue at the County Line restaurant and very late night trips back home. Though he was a health fanatic, he always seemed ready to splurge once in a while, especially at the Stout family Thanksgiving gatherings. Harry adored family gatherings in Nixon, Houston, Austin, or wherever they were held. He was blessed with a family who cared for him and loved to be around him.

During his time in Houston, Harry’s niece, Mollie, remembers him as a beacon of light. She cited a photo of him on one of his many adventures… fresh, tan, head full of hair like a lion and laughing out loud. This image really captured Harry for Mollie and saw him full of life, asking “how are you” (and wanting to truly know), a deep adoration of art, beauty, music, culture, health, wellness, and a desire to find answers of the unknown.

Deciding not to wait for the turnaround in the Houston real estate market, Harry pursued a new adventure, moving to Los Angeles. He was attracted to LA by the cultural opportunities, including an opportunity to meet people from all over the world. This was clearly the case at his initial stop, living in Koreatown, with its many challenges. It was here and later that Harry developed long lasting friendships with many in the community, including David, Sergio, Michel, and Alan. He was a big fan of Gustavo Kudamel, the famous conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and frequently attended symphony performances.

In a move that would have made Harry Ransom proud, Harry became a teacher in the toughest and roughest schools in inner city LA. He made some wonderful friends working at LA Unified, including Stacey, Firoza, Jorge, Cris, and Tino. Cris shared a story that LA Unified hired a contractor to optimize the payroll system, which would have resulted in the teachers missing a paycheck. Giving his sense of justice and fairness, Harry was willing to take on a fight that the Union refused. With help from Cris and others, Harry organized meetings and together they fought back, ultimately returning more than $40M of rightful pay back to deserving teachers. Stacey shared that as a Special Education teacher Harry was the 'go to' guy by leadership to help change bad behavior of problem kids. Harry knew how to relate to these kids and truly cared for them which was not lost on these kids.

We are thankful for the 88 years that we had with our brother, uncle, cousin and friend. We also are grateful for the love of family that came together to assure that Harry was honored in his last days with us. Mollie made a keen observation: Harry said he was going to live forever and when you turn the numbers 88 on their side it is two symbols of infinity so he will indeed live forever in our hearts.

A private inurnment to be conducted at a later date at Glenwood Cemetery, Houston.