Melburn Neal Lewallen, age 83, of Georgetown, Texas, was called to his eternal resting place on July 30, 2019. His family and many of his oldest and dearest friends knew him as "Buddy". At the time of his passing, he was surrounded by his two children; Mike and Cheryl Lewallen; his granddaughter Kaylee Lewallen; his "adopted" daughter Terri Needham and his dear friend Lorene White.
He was born in Waco, Texas on September 30, 1935 to Robert Hugh Lewallen and Erin Ballard. He grew up in Austin, Texas and attended Austin public schools. After graduating from Travis High School, he enlisted in the Naval Reserves and in 1957, he married the love of his life, Betty Eva Stanley. He attended The University of Texas at Austin and Southwest Texas State University before beginning a 33 year career with the State Department of Highways and Public Transportation.
Buddy is survived by his children Mike Lewallen and his wife Klista of Cedar Park, his daughter Cheryl Lewallen of Austin, his younger brother Ronnie Lewallen and his wife Kay of Elkhart, Texas, and his granddaughter Kaylee Lewallen of Austin, as well as many extended family of relatives and friends from every walk of life.
He was preceded in death by his devoted and loving wife, Betty Eva Stanley after 45 years of marriage, his parents Robert Hugh Lewallen and Erin Lewallen, and his brother Robert Hugh Lewallen II.
We were blessed to call him our dad, our grandpa and our "very best friend". He was loyal, honest and kind....just simply a good man and truly the best husband, dad, grandfather and friend that anyone could ask for. He was loved by all.
He loved spending time with his children, his granddaughter and his many lifelong friends. He looked forward to his daily coffee with the Whataburger crews in Austin and Georgetown. He loved a good 'BOB' ranchero a.k.a. Whataburger breakfast on a bun, his Camino Real chips and salsa, a burger from Dales in Walburg, and almost anything from the Bluebonnet Cafe in Marble Falls. He loved traveling to the mountains of Colorado, riding the train from Chama, New Mexico and visiting Big Bend. You could be assured he always had a clean car and that he was likely driving a different GMC from Nyle Maxwell's every year (much to Scot's dismay). And then there were those RVs...pop ups, uprights or 5th wheels which seemed to appear annually during his park hosting days at Pedernales Falls State Park.
The family would like to thank all the incredible nurses and physicians in the Intensive Care Unit at St. David's Georgetown Hospital for their kind and compassionate care. A special thank you to Dr. Dekeratry, Roxanne, Katy, Stephanie and Ashley for their compassion and support during his final days.
Visitation will be held at Cook-Walden/Capital Parks Funeral Home in Pflugerville, Texas from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 1, 2019. Graveside services to honor Buddy will be held at Cook-Walden/Capital Parks Cemetery on Friday at 2:00 p.m., August 2, 2019 with Steve Leftwich officiating.
In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully requests that any memorial contributions be made to the Alzheimer’s Association of Austin, Texas.
