Donald L Kling

Donald Kling, husband, dad, and grandfather, gained his heavenly wings on Tuesday, August 1, 2017. He had been ill for about a week and his wife, Maxine, was at his bedside when he passed.

Dad was born in Laclede, Missouri on November 19, 1937 to Calvin and Grace Kling. He graduated from Brookfield HS in 1955 and attended the University of Missouri. While attending Mizzou, he was actively involved with the Kappa Sigma Fraternity. In 1956, dad met his future bride, Maxine Best, a beauty from Royal Oak, Michigan, at Christian College, a private women's school in Columbia, Missouri. Mom says they went to a movie on their first date. As you know, the rest is history. Mom and dad were married on June 8, 1960. Nine months later, their first daughter, Pamela, was born. After graduating with a master's in geology the family moved to Texas to start a new life! Luckily, they ended up in Corpus Christi (originally it was suppose to be Midland!). Three more kids came into the picture with Andy in 1962 and twins Debbie and Tommy in 1964.

With 4 kids in tow, dad and mom always had their hands full! Dad worked for several oil and gas companies over the years. At home dad loved to take his kids fishing and camping! Dad was very involved with several organizations including the local Barbershop singing group and quartet as well as the Corpus Christi Geological Society where he served as President. We often would tag along with him to the bowling alley where he loved to play in a league!

Music was a big deal in our household! In addition to being a part of a singing chorus and quartet, dad loved to play the piano. In fact, he learned to play as a very young child and continued until he finished high school. We think that dad would have majored in music if he could have made a decent living at it. You could put a sheet of music in front of him and he could play it perfectly the first time! One of our favorite songs that he played was from the movie, "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken!"

Around 1976, dad decided to create his own company, Kling, Inc. He told us that things would be tight financially for a bit. Luckily, he was successful and we were able to move from our tiny house to a much larger house where the kids pretty much had their own bedrooms.

Vacations were a huge part of our lives growing up! Dad went out and bought a 19 foot trailer and we traveled all over the western part of the US every summer in it. Of course, dad would let all of us bring a friend along, so that meant we were packed in the trailer every night! We would often end up at dad's summer field camp up near Lander, Wyoming. The cool thing about these trips was that he could tell us everything about every landform we passed! One summer trip was a month long in 1977. We were camping at Lake Powell, in Arizona and back in the day we had no cell phones or internet to keep in touch with anyone. It turns out that dad called his mom, who thought we had all been killed in the Big Thompson Canyon Flood of 1977! During the school year, the family would pack up the trailer and head to Bastrop State Park for weekends of fun and relaxation.

Jump ahead years later and dad would become a father-in-law and papa! Son, Tommy, was the first to have a daughter, Cierra. Daughter, Debbie, had a son, Destry, and daughters Katie and Kylee! "Papa" loved his grandchildren! They would love to hang out with him and listen to his stories!

In his later years, dad had hip replacement surgery and suffered from a stroke. He eventually retired from his passion for finding oil and natural gas. While his health declined over the years, his witt and dry sense of humor remained intact. Dad always had a way to make others laugh!

Dad had many wonderful friends and acquaintances over the years. We are so grateful to each of you who had a positive impact on him and our family! You don't know how much that means to us!

This last week, he became very ill and the prognosis was grim. We would like to thank the nurses and doctors at Spohn South ICU who cared for him and us. Lisa, Belinda, and Amanda, you mean the world to our family! WE LOVE YOU! Also, we need to thank the staff at Angel Bright Hospice who cared for dad the last few hours of his life. He passed peacefully, thanks to your loving care. Huge kudos to John Roberts, pastor at Grace Presbyterian Church here in Corpus Christi, who has supported our family during this difficult time. John, you are AMAZING! Thanks to all of you who have supported us with your thoughts, prayers, cards, calls and food. We could not get through this without YOU ALL!

Our family will be hosting a visitation this Saturday, August 5 from 5-9 pm at Del Angel Memorial Holly @ 3442 Holly Road, Corpus Christi. A Celebration of Life will be September 9 @ 2 pm at Grace Presbyterian Church, 6301 Yorktown Blvd. in Corpus Christi.

Donald Kling, husband, dad, and grandfather, gained his heavenly wings on Tuesday, August 1, 2017. He had been ill for about a week and his wife, Maxine, was at his bedside when he passed.

Dad was born in Laclede, Missouri on November 19, 1937 to Calvin and Grace Kling. He graduated from Brookfield HS in 1955 and attended the University of Missouri. While attending Mizzou, he was actively involved with the Kappa Sigma Fraternity. In 1956, dad met his future bride, Maxine Best, a beauty from Royal Oak, Michigan, at Christian College, a private women's school in Columbia, Missouri. Mom says they went to a movie on their first date. As you know, the rest is history. Mom and dad were married on June 8, 1960. Nine months later, their first daughter, Pamela, was born. After graduating with a master's in geology the family moved to Texas to start a new life! Luckily, they ended up in Corpus Christi (originally it was suppose to be Midland!). Three more kids came into the picture with Andy in 1962 and twins Debbie and Tommy in 1964.

With 4 kids in tow, dad and mom always had their hands full! Dad worked for several oil and gas companies over the years. At home dad loved to take his kids fishing and camping! Dad was very involved with several organizations including the local Barbershop singing group and quartet as well as the Corpus Christi Geological Society where he served as President. We often would tag along with him to the bowling alley where he loved to play in a league!

Music was a big deal in our household! In addition to being a part of a singing chorus and quartet, dad loved to play the piano. In fact, he learned to play as a very young child and continued until he finished high school. We think that dad would have majored in music if he could have made a decent living at it. You could put a sheet of music in front of him and he could play it perfectly the first time! One of our favorite songs that he played was from the movie, "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken!"

Around 1976, dad decided to create his own company, Kling, Inc. He told us that things would be tight financially for a bit. Luckily, he was successful and we were able to move from our tiny house to a much larger house where the kids pretty much had their own bedrooms.

Vacations were a huge part of our lives growing up! Dad went out and bought a 19 foot trailer and we traveled all over the western part of the US every summer in it. Of course, dad would let all of us bring a friend along, so that meant we were packed in the trailer every night! We would often end up at dad's summer field camp up near Lander, Wyoming. The cool thing about these trips was that he could tell us everything about every landform we passed! One summer trip was a month long in 1977. We were camping at Lake Powell, in Arizona and back in the day we had no cell phones or internet to keep in touch with anyone. It turns out that dad called his mom, who thought we had all been killed in the Big Thompson Canyon Flood of 1977! During the school year, the family would pack up the trailer and head to Bastrop State Park for weekends of fun and relaxation.

Jump ahead years later and dad would become a father-in-law and papa! Son, Tommy, was the first to have a daughter, Cierra. Daughter, Debbie, had a son, Destry, and daughters Katie and Kylee! "Papa" loved his grandchildren! They would love to hang out with him and listen to his stories!

In his later years, dad had hip replacement surgery and suffered from a stroke. He eventually retired from his passion for finding oil and natural gas. While his health declined over the years, his witt and dry sense of humor remained intact. Dad always had a way to make others laugh!

Dad had many wonderful friends and acquaintances over the years. We are so grateful to each of you who had a positive impact on him and our family! You don't know how much that means to us!

This last week, he became very ill and the prognosis was grim. We would like to thank the nurses and doctors at Spohn South ICU who cared for him and us. Lisa, Belinda, and Amanda, you mean the world to our family! WE LOVE YOU! Also, we need to thank the staff at Angel Bright Hospice who cared for dad the last few hours of his life. He passed peacefully, thanks to your loving care. Huge kudos to John Roberts, pastor at Grace Presbyterian Church here in Corpus Christi, who has supported our family during this difficult time. John, you are AMAZING! Thanks to all of you who have supported us with your thoughts, prayers, cards, calls and food. We could not get through this without YOU ALL!

Our family will be hosting a visitation this Saturday, August 5 from 5-9 pm at Del Angel Memorial Holly @ 3442 Holly Road, Corpus Christi. A Celebration of Life will be September 9 @ 2 pm at Grace Presbyterian Church, 6301 Yorktown Blvd. in Corpus Christi.

Donald Kling, husband, dad, and grandfather, gained his heavenly wings on Tuesday, August 1, 2017. He had been ill for about a week and his wife, Maxine, was at his bedside when he passed.

Dad was born in Laclede, Missouri on November 19, 1937 to Calvin and Grace Kling. He graduated from Brookfield HS in 1955 and attended the University of Missouri. While attending Mizzou, he was actively involved with the Kappa Sigma Fraternity. In 1956, dad met his future bride, Maxine Best, a beauty from Royal Oak, Michigan, at Christian College, a private women's school in Columbia, Missouri. Mom says they went to a movie on their first date. As you know, the rest is history. Mom and dad were married on June 8, 1960. Nine months later, their first daughter, Pamela, was born. After graduating with a master's in geology the family moved to Texas to start a new life! Luckily, they ended up in Corpus Christi (originally it was suppose to be Midland!). Three more kids came into the picture with Andy in 1962 and twins Debbie and Tommy in 1964.

With 4 kids in tow, dad and mom always had their hands full! Dad worked for several oil and gas companies over the years. At home dad loved to take his kids fishing and camping! Dad was very involved with several organizations including the local Barbershop singing group and quartet as well as the Corpus Christi Geological Society where he served as President. We often would tag along with him to the bowling alley where he loved to play in a league!

Music was a big deal in our household! In addition to being a part of a singing chorus and quartet, dad loved to play the piano. In fact, he learned to play as a very young child and continued until he finished high school. We think that dad would have majored in music if he could have made a decent living at it. You could put a sheet of music in front of him and he could play it perfectly the first time! One of our favorite songs that he played was from the movie, "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken!"

Around 1976, dad decided to create his own company, Kling, Inc. He told us that things would be tight financially for a bit. Luckily, he was successful and we were able to move from our tiny house to a much larger house where the kids pretty much had their own bedrooms.

Vacations were a huge part of our lives growing up! Dad went out and bought a 19 foot trailer and we traveled all over the western part of the US every summer in it. Of course, dad would let all of us bring a friend along, so that meant we were packed in the trailer every night! We would often end up at dad's summer field camp up near Lander, Wyoming. The cool thing about these trips was that he could tell us everything about every landform we passed! One summer trip was a month long in 1977. We were camping at Lake Powell, in Arizona and back in the day we had no cell phones or internet to keep in touch with anyone. It turns out that dad called his mom, who thought we had all been killed in the Big Thompson Canyon Flood of 1977! During the school year, the family would pack up the trailer and head to Bastrop State Park for weekends of fun and relaxation.

Jump ahead years later and dad would become a father-in-law and papa! Son, Tommy, was the first to have a daughter, Cierra. Daughter, Debbie, had a son, Destry, and daughters Katie and Kylee! "Papa" loved his grandchildren! They would love to hang out with him and listen to his stories!

In his later years, dad had hip replacement surgery and suffered from a stroke. He eventually retired from his passion for finding oil and natural gas. While his health declined over the years, his witt and dry sense of humor remained intact. Dad always had a way to make others laugh!

Dad had many wonderful friends and acquaintances over the years. We are so grateful to each of you who had a positive impact on him and our family! You don't know how much that means to us!

This last week, he became very ill and the prognosis was grim. We would like to thank the nurses and doctors at Spohn South ICU who cared for him and us. Lisa, Belinda, and Amanda, you mean the world to our family! WE LOVE YOU! Also, we need to thank the staff at Angel Bright Hospice who cared for dad the last few hours of his life. He passed peacefully, thanks to your loving care. Huge kudos to John Roberts, pastor at Grace Presbyterian Church here in Corpus Christi, who has supported our family during this difficult time. John, you are AMAZING! Thanks to all of you who have supported us with your thoughts, prayers, cards, calls and food. We could not get through this without YOU ALL!

Our family will be hosting a visitation this Saturday, August 5 from 5-9 pm at Del Angel Memorial Holly @ 3442 Holly Road, Corpus Christi. A Celebration of Life will be September 9 @ 2 pm at Grace Presbyterian Church, 6301 Yorktown Blvd. in Corpus Christi.

Arrangements under the direction of Funeraria Del Angel - Memorial Holly, Corpus Christi, TX.