Noah Frazier was born June 2, 1939 in Lake Providence Louisiana. His parents, Mary Brown and Joseph White raised him and his 13 siblings in a place and time when racial inequality was the norm. Their main family income came from his mother, him and all of his siblings picking cotton throughout “cotton season,” each year not being able to be present in school until “cotton season” was over each November. He accepted “Christ” in his life at an early age and had a thorough understanding of GOD’s Word. He left Louisiana a few days after his high school graduation from Griffin High School, where he played basketball, football, and participated in oration and debate. His claim to fame that he would tell anyone who wanted to hear it was that in 1957, he won the (State) Louisiana Speech Cup for Serious Dramatic Interpretation. He engaged people very often with his orator skills, mostly when he would have what he called “a taste.” He followed his older siblings to Houston, where he decided to enroll in San Jacinto College, a community college in downtown Houston. He decided to study Roofing and received his certification a short time afterwards. He would again tell anyone who would listen that he was the first black certified Roofer in the state of Texas. His roofing certification led to him being hired by San Jacinto College (Downtown) to teach Roofing as an instructor. Some of his best students would call him “Tech.” His country flair – love for listening to country music and wearing cowboy hats and boots, led to his closest friends calling him “Old Tex.” That name stuck with him throughout the duration of his life. After many years of teaching Roofing, “Old Tex” decided to start his own business, Cullen Roofing Company. He roofed upwards of 300-500 houses and business in the Houston area. He was responsible for giving as many as 100-150 people jobs working with him on roof jobs throughout his business existence. He was generous to strangers, many times giving them a job and allowing them to live in the Frazier household until they “got on their feet.” He loved his wife, Bettye deeply his entire life and cherished his life with her. He was a very good father to his children. He ensured that they valued education, learned a work ethic, and understood that “nothing would come to you until you went to it.” In other words, you have work for things that you want. He was a championship “Nicknamer.” His wife Bettye Jean was “Jeano.” His son, Ken is “Pick.” His son, Mike was “Spike.” His son, Ralph is “Pappy.” His son, Mickey is “Claymore.” His daughter, Lyma is “Diamond.” He had a host of other nicknames for people that didn’t even know that they had a nickname. His last addition to his name (Old Tex) is “The Legend.” He had a desire to live his life in such a way that he would be considered by his family and friends to be “a legend in his time.” He also expressed to people that he would not die until he wanted to die. In the end he may have decided that he could no longer exist without the love of his life, Betty. His loss of her almost four years ago finally led to him going to meet her and his son Mike in heaven.
Old Tex, The Legend
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