Orten Bryan Wilcoxen Jr.

On Monday, January 27th 2025 our amazing father joined his partner, our beautiful mother, Carolyn Ruth. The most amazing parents anyone’s ever had. He left us peacefully surrounded by family in is beloved home of 59 years.

Orten Bryan Wilcoxen Jr., also known as O.B was born at home in Louise, Texas on October 19th, 1927. He grew up learning to be kind, fair, practical and to work hard to support those he loved. He built his mom and dad their first home with the money he saved from all his jobs. He did many jobs to earn money and help out from plowing fields at 5yrs old with his dad. Working in the garden with his mom, picking cotton, sacking coffee and flour in the store for Saturday pick-up by all the farmers in the area, and delivering eggs. His first real job at 14 was delivering soda pop and beer on the weekends when the others called in sick. At 15, the summer of 1943 he started driving a dump truck for Brown &

Root for $1.00 an hour. With overtime he was making big money at $77.00 a week. Building roads in Freeport, Angleton, and Pierce: because he was reliable, trustworthy, and could read, He became their crew chief after 3 days.

Our Dad worked hard all his life, his motto was if he had a nickel, he saved a nickel. Making money and being financially secure was very important to him. He had a strong commitment to his family and worked hard to give them the best life he could (and he did!). As hard as Dad worked, he always left work behind when he walked in the back door, it was all about our mom and his three girls. Most of Dad’s career was in the food service industry, he worked for Wyatt’s cafeteria, and we moved to San Antonio in 1966 when he took a job with Handy Andy as Vice President of Food Service. He then opened his own food brokerage company, Southwestern Food Brokerage. He loved his food. After he retired, he worked in his 2-acre garden, growing everything from tomatoes, potatoes green beans and corn for miles, black-eyed peas, turnip greens, watermelon, cantaloupe, peaches, pears, dewberries and everything under the sun. Mom loved to say he could grow a toothpick. His favorite were fields of flowers bluebonnets and Indian paintbrushes that filled the remaining ground. Dad and Mom liked to go on road trips to Coushatta, Sandi and I would pack them up and take them 4 times a year. Such great memories in their final years together. One of Dad’s favorite things was to have breakfast on the patio with his love, our mom. He would say “Now this is living”. They would sit outside and talk about how good their lives had been and how proud they were of the family they had built.

Our father lived a long, interesting life with the love of his life, (His Lady) as he called mom his little brunette girl, Carolyn Ruth (Thacker) Wilcoxen. The love they shared was beautiful and rare to witness and a blessing to be a part of.

Dad was preceded in death by his parents Orten Wilcoxen Sr & Bessie May (known as Sugar) Brown. Brothers: Dink Thurman Wilcoxen (Adalu) and Ray Wilcoxen (Irene) and son-in-law Dwayne Van Hoose and his mother-in-law Margaret (Mimi) Thacker and sister-in-law Sandra Louise Thacker.

He is survived by Daughters:

Marlys Wilcoxen Connor (Matt)

Jeri Lynn Van Hoose Wilcoxen

Sandi Gay Mueller (Rod)

Grandchildren: Michael Bryan Haston, Carrie Lynn Djordjevic, Evie Carolyn Nichols (Jimmy), Josh Mueller (Cassie), Kelcy Palmer (Ian)

Great grandchildren: Madison Marie Haston, Makenzie Lynn Haston, Margaret (Maggie) Ruth Ann Djordjevic, Madeline Amret Mueller, Oliver Quinn Mueller, Elise Fig Mueller, Caroline Nichols, Owen Greyson Palmer, Elliot Faye Palmer, Hailee Connor, Jack Connor

Brothers in law: Carlys Arra (Buzzy) Thacker & Glenn Echols

The family would like to thank Vitas Hospice Care for loving, respectful care the past two years.

Especially Marie, Liz, Michelle, and Devon, I couldn’t have done the last 2 years without you.

Orten Bryan Wilcoxen Jr. left this world January 27, 2025, to rejoin his wife, Carolyn. She had gone on ahead to prepare his spot beside her. After 71 years of partnership in marriage, the two years between her passing and his were just enough to remind him that his Lady was waiting, and he loved her more than life itself. Born October 19, 1927, in a tiny house on a very small farm in Louise, Texas. As the first son and only child of a young Mother Bessie May (Brown) Wilcoxen and older Father Orten Wilcoxen, he was cherished, taught and taken everywhere the first 5 years of his life. When his brother was born, he became a permanent fixture at his dad’s right hip. He learned everything his father could teach him, and the biggest lesson was that he could get more done if he worked without talking. When Jr. was 7 his father had a bad fall, and the doctor put him flat on his back in bed for three months. This meant the farm became completely under Junior's care and supervision. Missing 2 months of school was the only positive thing he could come up with when telling of this adventure. He told it where with the mule’s help he planted one full acre of corn by themselves, the mule being the older and more experienced of the pair. My Daddy was an amazing man for such an ordinary person. He was born in a two-room house and the very next day he was trying to figure out how to get to town. Farming did not interest him so he put together a list of items that he and his mom could make and sell to the stores in town. Eggs, cheese, butter. He was asked once why he preferred margarine over butter when he grew up eating butter. He corrected quickly that mistaken idea. We made butter for trade. I could get five pounds of margarine for one pound of butter. I wish I had asked the trade value on cheese, but he never wasted it just putting it on stuff willy nilly. If it had to be the Star, cheese and an apple or cheese and crackers. Loved it but he wasted nothing. Ever! At 14 he started driving the “Soda Pops” truck after school. Most of the time he would be driving the beer truck on Saturday as one of the other drivers would not show up. Once he drove two beer routes on one Saturday. When those beer drivers protested that one, he said, sorry he was just a stupid kid. May have been a kid but he was never stupid. When 15 he went to work on a road crew 30 miles away from home. So, he found a cheap boarding house, bought a can opener and 6 cans of tomatoes and 12 cans of pork and beans for a week of 15-minute lunches. Best, cheapest thing he could think of to eat standing or driving next to hot asphalt that the other men had just put down. However, 3 days in Ort was in charge of the road crew, both ends! Rational was he could drive, he did not waste time, (lollygag) but mostly because he could read. So, he was driving all over the Gulf coast of Texas, picking up and putting down. We have run out of room for an obituary, but you can call his eldest daughter at 720-620-7162. Talking about her Daddy is her favorite thing to do. Oh, he did not get his driver’s license until he was 24! Orten was 97 and is survived by his daughters Marlys W. Connor, Jeri Wilcoxen and Sandi Mueller. His grandchildren Bryan Haston, Carrie H. Djordjevic, Evie C. Nichols, Josh Mueller, Kelcy M. Palmer, multiple in-laws and out-laws great-grandchildren.

A Graveside Service for Orten will be held Tuesday, February 4, 2025 at10:00 AM at Sunset Memorial Park, 1701 Austin Hwy, San Antonio, TX 78218.