Wayland Chapman

Services for Hubert Wayland Chapman, 74, of Killeen will be 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, July 24, 2012, at the Killeen Church of Christ at 400 North W.S. Young Drive in Killeen. Interment will follow at Killeen City Cemetery.

Wayland was born February 27, 1938 in the pool house of the old Riverside swimming pool in Belton and passed away July 21, 2012 at his home. He moved to Killeen during elementary school and met his life-long love, Patricia Ann Wright, in the sixth grade. Wayland played football for Leo Buckley and was on the first Killeen High School football team that went to the state championship in 1955. He graduated in 1956 and married Patricia on November 18, 1956. In his early adulthood, Wayland served in the U.S. Army Reserves, worked for the U.S. Postal Service and served as a volunteer fireman in Killeen.

In 1961, he started Belco Signs where he established and maintained a reputation of honesty and integrity that has served central Texas businesses for over 50 years and will be respectfully carried on by two of his sons, David and Paul. Wayland believed in providing quality products that exceeded all building standards and city codes and refused to compromise on that principle. He worked with the area cities over the years to develop and adopt workable sign ordinances and served on the Board of Directors of the Texas Sign Association for several years. Although he officially retired from Belco recently, he continued to work up until just a few days prior to his death. During his early years as an entrepreneur, he was also a member of the Lions Club and served on the Board of Directors of the Killeen Chamber of Commerce

Wayland was a long-time member of the Killeen Church of Christ where he was an integral part of the spiritual and physical growth of the congregation. His many years of service as a Deacon and leadership as an Elder were only an outcropping of his natural tendency to organize and lead by example. Many was the time that Wayland showed up with his yellow tablet in hand and a pencil behind his ear to rally the workers to successfully accomplish whatever task or project was ahead.

When he could be pulled away from his responsibilities, Wayland enjoyed golf, wood carving, drawing, calligraphy and helping others with any project they were having trouble accomplishing.

Wayland was preceded in death by his parents, Hubert Claude Chapman and Tena (Bristow) Chapman of Belton; and Brother, Bill Chapman of St. Petersburg, Florida.

Wayland is survived by his wife of 55 years, Patricia Ann Chapman of Killeen; Son, David Wayland Chapman and his wife Shelly (Callon) of Belton and their sons Matt, Reagan and Ethan; Son, Gary Dale Chapman and his wife Kim (Walker) of Haslet, TX and their daughters Morgan and Maddie; Son, Paul Jeffrey Chapman of Belton; Brother, Raymond Chapman and his wife Jeanne of Belton; Sara Chapman, sister-in-law of St. Petersburg, FL; and several nieces, nephews, extended family, friends and numerous brothers and sisters in Christ.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent to Cherokee Home for Children, PO Box 295, Cherokee, TX 76832-9989.