Jean-Pierre Bex

JP was born January 30, 1930 in Brussels, Belgium to Leonie Tondeur and Aloys Bex. He studied Sciences at the University of Louvain and earned PhD’s in Chemistry and Physics and a post-doctorate degree in Polyolefins. He taught at the Polytechnique Institute in Brussels from 1954 to 1957, and fulfilled his military obligations in 1958.

He married Anne-Marie Rovira at the end of 1958, and became an Adjunct Professor at his alma mater at the end of the same year. In 1960 he moved to New Jersey with his family and six-month-old daughter, Anne-Catherine to do research in polymers for W.R. Grace. In 1963, the family grew with the addition of his son, Vincent. After 5 years, he made it back to Belgium with a detour through Zurich, Switzerland, where the company had him open a research lab.

In 1965, he was back in Belgium with a new company, Ciba, where he was put in charge of plastics development until 1969. He then pursued his military advancement, eventually reaching commander.

He was knighted twice by King Leopold of Belgium, once for rewriting the course on ammunition and ordinance. He is an “Officer of the Order of Leopold” and a “Knight of the Order of the Cross”.

In 1969, he was missing his work in research and went to work for Solvay. There, he assumed the position of Assistant Director of Research and New Products. In 1970, he was put in charge of new product development and marketing. In 1976, he requested a transfer back to the United States, Houston this time, to a branch recently acquired by Solvay, called Soltex. While there, he chaired the Committee of Resin Statistics. He eventually retired from this company in 1995. Always in need of staying busy, and while still employed at Soltex, in 1980, he started a burglar alarm and security access company, BR International, that he eventually sold around the time of his retirement from Soltex.

JP was fiercely in love with his home country of Belgium, but just as much enamored with “his Texas”. He was a devout Catholic and a Knight Templar and Shriner with the masons.

His insatiable need to care for and love someone could not be contained and following Anne-Marie’s passing in 1994, he married Elsa de Lavega in 1998. Following Elsa’s death in 2002, he married Barbara Smith in 2005.

JP is survived by his brother, Guy Bex; children, Vincent (Teresa) Bex and Anne-Catherine (Mickey) Bex-Seals; step-daughters Suzanne (Jimmy) Coffman, Laura West, Sherri Marshall; 10 grandchildren and 20 great grandchildren, including: Robert and Amy Seals (Lyla and Luke), Matthew and Amy Seals (Stella and Sage), Michael and Kara Seals (Cain, Sydney, Sailor, Sawyer), Rachel and Aaron (Landon and Autumn Anne-Marie) Tenenholz, Harold and Lisa Sylva, Jacob (Vincent Levi) Sylva.

JP was preceded in death by his parents, his sister, Marie-Paule, and 3 spouses: Anne-Marie Bex, Elsa Bex, and Barbara Bex.

In lieu of flowers, SPCA donations in JP's name are appreciated.