Fred H. “Pops” Whitaker, 92, passed peacefully into the arms of his Lord on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. Fred was born to Lawrence and Chlora Whitaker of Houston, on May 9, 1926. He was the apple of his mother’s eye and the jokester brother of 3 sisters, JoAnn, Eloise, and Billie. He met and fell in love with his soul mate, the only love of his life, Betty Jane Holcomb, in high school and married her on May 5, 1944. Pops was a proud member of the United States Marine Corps and World War II veteran, fighting bravely for his country in Okinawa. Upon his return, he and Betty built their home in the Oak Forest area of Houston where he lived until 2017. Their family was made complete with the birth of their daughter, Debbie. Pops was a master electrician and worked for the family owned business, Whitaker Electric for most of his career. He was well known and loved within his craft for his undying work ethic and dedicated team leadership. In his spare time, Pops was constantly volunteering his time, resources and building talents to anyone and everyone that needed his help. He enjoyed building and woodworking projects, working on his farm, and spending time with family. He was long time faithful member and servant of Lazybrook Baptist Church in Houston. He was preceded in death by his parents, sisters Eloise and JoAnn, and his wife of 47 years, Betty Jane. He is survived by his daughter, Debbie and her husband, Don, grandson Matt and his wife, Ashley, and great granddaughter, Reagan Jane, with whom he adored and had a special bond, as well as his sister, Billie Hairell and husband Raymond and a sister-in-law, Margie Syer, in addition to multiple nieces, nephews and friends. The family is especially grateful for the loving and compassionate care of our Pops, to his friends and caretakers while he remained at home, Nanette Moore and Robin Konetzke and, over the past 16 months, to the staff of The Solana at Vintage Park and Brookdale Hospice.
