William Stanton McDonald Sr.

William Stanton “Stan” McDonald, husband, father, friend, oil man, sporting clay shooter, avid bird hunter, and saltwater fisherman, died unexpectedly on Saturday, September 30, 2017 in Austin, Texas.

Stan was born on October 8, 1964 in Houston, Texas to Dr. and Mrs. William McDonald. He graduated from Memorial High School in Houston in 1983, and then from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in geology in 1988. He was a proud member of Kappa Sigma fraternity, Tau chapter.

On New Year’s Eve 1991, Stan met Kelly Lamb and the two became immediate, inseparable best friends. After a year of pretending to be “just friends” and a lot of worrying about ruining a good thing, they took a leap of faith and started dating. Stan proposed on New Year’s Eve 1995, and he and Kelly were married on September 28, 1996 in Dallas. They had just celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary two days prior to Stan’s passing.

The McDonalds live in Austin, where Stan was a petroleum geologist, working in all facets of the oil and gas industry. In 2003 he formed South Texas Gas, LLC, and was managing partner until his death.

Stan was proud of his business, but his greatest achievement—other than convincing Kelly to marry him—was becoming the father of their two boys, Stanton (14) and Hunter (13). He loved spending time with his boys and fostering their interests, including music, baseball, bowling, skiing, hunting and fishing.

Stan was on the Board of Directors for the Oak Hill Youth Sports Association (OHYSA) and served as their Bronco Commissioner. Stan helped found the Roughriders Barbecue Team more than 25 years ago and served as its president for many years. Stan participated in numerous fishing tournaments and charity shooting events. Stan was very involved with the Boy Scouts of America, and also was a member of Texas Independent Producers & Royalties Owners Association (TIPRO).

Stan was a loving and faithful husband and father, a loyal friend who was always ready to help those in need, a patient and unselfish teacher of outdoor sports, and the guy you always wanted to invite to parties.

He is survived by his wife Kelly and sons Stanton and Hunter; his parents, Dr. and Mrs. William McDonald of Houston, Texas; his sister Jessica McDonald of Houston, Texas; his parents-in-law Mr. and Mrs. David Lamb, brother-in-law David Lamb, and niece Sophia Lamb of Willis, Texas; and countless friends all over Texas and the United States.

A memorial service to honor Stan McDonald will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 7th at Shepherd of the Hills Presbyterian Church, 5226 W. William Cannon Dr, Austin, Texas, with a celebration of his life to follow at the home of Lance and Cheryl Lively.

To share your stories and photos, please visit

www.forevermissed.com/stan-mcdonald

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you make a donation in Stan’s name to Oak Hill Youth Sports Association at ohysa.com.

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