Bill Pardue, 88, a self-proclaimed “ole farm boy” from a family of educators who served as a teacher himself for more than 40 years, died comfortably and at peace on April 2, 2018. Generations of students, including those in the Austin Independent School District, were taught government, history, and other topics in Bill’s classes. From the way he lived his life, friends and family learned about tolerance, humility, squeezing kindness out of each day, favoring cheer rather than anger, and striving towards right.
Bill was born to David Artine Pardue and Ennie Mae Gilmer in Sherman, Texas. He spent his early years on a family farm, attending small schools in Rattan and Pecan Gap in northeast Texas. The books in his father’s library and a Silvertone family radio with a shortwave band introduced him to the world beyond chickens and cotton, sparking interest in languages, classical music, and other deeply held enthusiasms.
He graduated from high school at age 16 and followed his father, mother, and an older brother into the teaching profession, earning a Bachelor of Arts from East Texas State Teachers College in 1949. Bill began teaching in Houston before being drafted into the U.S. Army during the Korean War. Military service took him to Okinawa, Japan, before he received a Good Conduct Medal and a National Defense Service Medal.
A greater award awaited upon his return. Bill met Patricia (“Patsy”) Pardue (nee Meador) through a mutual friend, and the two were married on December 22, 1956 – close to Christmas so the families wouldn’t have to travel unnecessarily. The couple spent nearly 41 happy years together and had two sons and a daughter.
Most of Bill’s professional social studies classes convened in Austin schools – Porter Junior High School, Fulmore Middle School, and Johnston, Crockett and Reagan high schools. He was an advocate for educators and education on boards and committees for the Texas Classroom Teachers Association and Texas State Teachers Association, and in the mid-1970s served as president of the Austin Association of Teachers.
Bill also served in the Delwood Northeast Optimists when his boys got involved in Little League. To his kids, life with dad was a steady swim in the fountain of knowledge. Family vacations often included Bill’s narration at historic Civil War battlefields, and long drives were a chance for him to recount tales of Greek mythology or re-introduce them to Scott Joplin, John Philip Sousa, and other favorite musicians.
After he retired in 1990, Bill increased his interest in genealogy, camping, University of Texas baseball and other sports, and being the best grandfather possible to his four grandsons.
Bill is preceded in death by his beloved wife, Patsy. He is survived by his son, David Pardue and wife, Beverly; his son, Kevin Pardue and wife, Laura; his daughter Denise Mitchell and husband John; and four grandsons, John Orige William Pardue, Andrew William “Tex” Pardue, Austin Jacques Pardue, and Keith Lawrence Mitchell.
The family will receive friends from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. Friday, April 13, at Cook-Walden Funeral Home, 6100 North Lamar, Austin. The service will be held Saturday, April 14 at 2 p.m., in the Colonial Chapel of Cook-Walden, with interment following at Cook-Walden Capital Parks, Pflugerville.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial contributions be made to Reading is Fundamental or a charity of one’s choice.
To share condolences with the family, please visit www.cookwaldenfuneralhome.com.
