Andrew W. Eckert Jr.

Andrew Wilburn Eckert, Jr. was born November 28, 1942 in Galveston Texas to Winona Helen Sloan and Andrew Wilburn Eckert. Andy lived in Oklahoma for 34 years. God welcomed him to heaven on Sunday February 14, 2016, Saint Valentine’s Day.

Andy completed his grade school and high school years in Texas, finishing at Monterey High School in Lubbock. He attended the University of Houston studying engineering technology for two years prior to enlisting in the US Navy in 1962. Andy served as a Seaman Apprentice until entering Officer Candidate Training in Pensacola, Florida.

Andy received a commission as a Lieutenant in the United States Navy in 1967. Assigned to the USS America CV-66 in 1968, he flew with the Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron VAW-122. As a naval flight officer during the Vietnam Conflict, Lt. Eckert vectored fighter and search and rescue missions from the radar plane E-2 Hawkeye. He also served his country in several deployments to the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Following his sea duty assignments he served as an Air Traffic Controller for the US Naval Air Station in Kingsville, Texas.

After his separation from the Navy in 1972, Andy worked for the Federal Aviation Administration in Little Rock, Arkansas until 1981 when he became an entrepreneur. He enjoyed operating several private enterprises with like-minded friends and partners in Arkansas and in Oklahoma. He was a member of the National Rifle Association, and an advocate for “gun rights” and for legal pawn and short-term credit businesses. He spent every hour he could with dear friends going deep-sea fishing, restoring sports cars, playing cards, or hunting.

He is survived by his two daughters, Genevieve Carol Eckert (David) Janse and Leah des Anges Eckert Angel (John Gambrell), four grandchildren, Michaela, McKenna, and Montana McKay, and Charles Allen Angel, IV. His three sisters Andrea Eckert Watters, Sheri Eckert Smith and Maribeth Eckert Shuster also survive him, along with one niece and two nephews.

His long-time friend Laurence Donahoe said “Andy never compromised his principles and never backed down from a fight if it was something he believed in. He was the best man I ever knew.” His sharp wit and sense of humor endeared him to everyone he knew. We thank God for sharing him with us and will remember him for his generosity and his contributions to social causes. He was a good friend, brother and father.