Ira Wynn Sanborn

Ira lead a life of faith, leadership, and service, and valued his family above all else. Ira was a good man who was dearly loved and will be sorely missed.

Ira was born in Pasadena, Texas, on November 13, 1942. As a boy he was active in his church and enjoyed Christian leadership training and gospel magic. In high school, Ira participated in track, football, and was the VP of the Math, Engineering, and Science Club. He graduated from Pasadena High School and received an engineering scholarship from Monsanto Chemical Company to Lamar College of Technology in Beaumont, Texas. In college, Ira served as the President of the Student Body, was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering in 1966.

Ira’s early career included management positions at Phillips Petroleum in Oklahoma and Denver, Crude Oil Supply in Denver, and in operating his own business, Cougar Oil Marketers, Inc. He later became a technical consultant for LWG Consulting in Chicago and was the district manager for LWG, which became FTI Consulting, in Houston. After retiring, Ira also worked as a consultant for FTI at Ground Zero after 9/11 in New York for several months.

Ira was proud to have served his country in the National Defense Executive Reserve (NDER) for 4 years in New York. He was an active member of the Jaycees and served on various committees of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. His son, Chris Sanborn, was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis at an early age so the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation became a great part of Ira’s life. Ira and his son were also highly involved with training students about Robotics across the Houston area.

Ira enjoyed golf, snow skiing, and scuba diving. He loved to travel, visited all but 2 states in the U.S., and saw much of the world. He loved his Houston sports teams and had season tickets to the Rockets, the Oilers, the Texans, and the Astros.

Ira was preceded in death by his mother and father, Margaret Burns Sanborn and Ira Sanborn, Jr., and brother, David Burns Sanborn.

Ira is survived by his wife, Olga Moya, from Houston, and son, Christopher Sanborn and his wife, Tammy Sanborn from Texas City, his sister, Carol Sanborn Morgan and her husband, Sam R. Morgan from Portsmouth, Virginia, and niece, Sabrina Renee Oglesbee and her husband, Forrest Oglesbee from San Jose, California, and nieces, Angela Sanborn Ryden, and husband Greg Ryden and Patricia Sanborn Jones and husband, Michael Jones, from the Houston area. He will also be remembered with love by Olga Moya’s family, mother, Jovita Gutierrez of San Angelo, Texas, sister, Yolanda Huerta and husband, Felix Huerta, daughter Jacqueline Williford and husband, James Williford, from San Antonio, Texas. He is also survived by long-time devoted friends, Charles Chetham of Houston and Ron and Janie Schmidt of New Braunsfels and many more.

The family would like to thank the doctors and nurses at M.D. Anderson for their continued care and support in fighting his cancer.

Family and friends are invited to attend a visitation and memorial service at Brookside Funeral Home, Cypress Creek, located at 9149 Highway 6 North, Houston, Texas, 77095 on Thursday, June 16, 2016 from 6:00-9:00 PM. The memorial service will be held from 6:30 to 7:30. A Celebration of Life will be held on Friday, June 17, 2016, from 4:00-6:00 at B&B Butchers and Restaurant, 1814 Washington Avenue, Houston, Texas 77007.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and the American Cancer Society.