John Marion Harding Jr.

John Marion Harding Jr., 72 passed away on Saturday, November 18, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. He was born August 28, 1951 in Fairbanks, Alaska. His home, where he grew up, with the mountains he so dearly loved, was El Paso, Texas.

After earning his BA in English Literature at UTEP, he went to the University of Chicago and earned a MA in European history.

He entered the Army shortly after coming home from Chicago. He went to Airborne and Ranger school and became an officer of the infantry just like our dad. John was stationed in Korea most of his tenure.

After serving his time in the Army, he decided to go to law school. He graduated at the top of his class, from St. Mary's law school in San Antonio, Texas. He chose St. Mary's because they had an exceptional program for teaching the history of law.

He practiced law in Tarrant County, Ft. Worth for 30 years, first as an ADA then as a criminal attorney. John was well respected in his field. He was an extremely effective trial attorney because he could truly mesmerize an audience. His height of 6 ft. 7 inches also was a factor. It earned him two nicknames Big John and the Gentle Giant.

John was a voracious reader, reading everything he got his hands on. It all started as a three year old reading comic books with our dad while mom was doing the grocery shopping. He had varied intellectual interest and pursuits as exemplified in his degrees in literature, law, and history. John was very knowledgeable on a wide range of subjects and had a remarkable memory of events. He had a hilarious clever sense of humor and could make people laugh out loud. He loved doing impersonations. I always told him he missed his calling as an actor.

John was a very kind generous gentleman his entire life. He was the best big brother a girl could ask for.

John was very much loved and respected and will greatly be missed.

He is survived by his sister Jane Harding Aguirre and his brother-in-law David Guion Aguirre. He was preceded in death by our wonderful parents John and Mildred Harding.

Rite of committal for John will be held Tuesday, December 19, 2023 at 1:00 PM at Fort Bliss National Cemetery, 5200 Fred Wilson Ave, Fort Bliss, Texas 79906.

To quote a recent tribute by a colleague of John's I found exceptionally touching, "I truly wish you had known John Harding. John was an outstanding lawyer as a prosecutor in the District Attorney's Office back in the 1990's and early 2000's. But he was an even better person. John was always a consummate gentleman. He had a wonderful sense of humor. He was competent to a fault. He had the ability to truly understand people and how they functioned and could stumble into the circumstances they might find themselves in. He could be a very effective prosecutor without ever taking anything personal. He treated everyone with the utmost respect. I will miss the example he set for us all. He left our profession better than he found it. We will miss you, John Harding."

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.MartinFuneralHomeWest.com for the Harding family.