Bartlett Cocke, Jr.

Bartlett Cocke, the San Antonio businessman who founded Bartlett Cocke General Contractors, died peacefully at his San Antonio home surrounded by those he loved. They include his wife of 63 years, Winifred Winter Cocke; and his three children, Reagan Cocke (Stephanie), Bartlett Cocke III (Tina) and Martha Wiltamuth (Scott). Bartlett is also survived by his six grandchildren: Catherine, Winston, Granger, Carter, Mimi, and Ian; his brother-in-law, Lewis Tarver; and his nephews and niece, Banks, Catharine, and Clay. His parents, Mildred and Bartlett Cocke, Sr.; and sister, Tinka Tarver preceded him in death.

Bartlett was born in San Antonio and graduated from Alamo Heights High School (Class of ’48). Bartlett continued to The University of Texas where he studied business. His service as SAE rush chairman no doubt contributed to the “five-year plan” he pursued at UT, but as he matured, he began honing the strong work ethic, self-discipline, and sense of purpose that would characterize him. Bartlett joined the Air Force in 1953, rising to First Lieutenant. Stationed in Germany, he controlled flights between Frankfurt and Berlin and fighter jets in southern Germany.

Two years later Bartlett returned to the US where he worked for Browning Construction Company. He set out on his own in 1959 with a handful of tiny jobs. He first rented a small office from his best friend, Frank Prassel (with whom he later calculated he ate over 2,000 Wednesday lunches). He then bought his own property on Perrin Beitel Road. In 1969 the company was incorporated as Bartlett Cocke Jr. Construction Co. and participated in the construction of Hemisfair Park, and in 1981 completed its first high-rise office building, One Riverwalk Place. Today his former company is 64 years old with additional offices in Austin and Houston. While he was gratified for each project he built, he was proudest that he built a business, and what brought him the greatest satisfaction was that employees could become shareholders in the company.

Bartlett served as President of the Associated General Contractors of Texas and of San Antonio, President of the KLRN Endowment Fund, and on the Alamo Heights School Board and the boards of Alamo National Bank and Broadway Bank. He was inducted into the San Antonio Business Hall of Fame in 2016 and established the Bartlett Cocke Executive-in-Residence Scholarship Fund at UTSA College of Business. Bartlett served in many roles at Christ Episcopal Church including Sunday school teacher, youth leader, member of a rector search committee, and Senior Warden. A book lover, he read more than 60 biographies of Winston Churchill. Bartlett encouraged his children to pursue educational opportunities that sometimes took them far from home and toward vocations they could develop on their own.

He and Winifred enjoyed being with their friends at home and at their lake house and eventually traveled the world to all seven continents. Bartlett loved the outdoors, taking Winifred and his children on numerous hiking and camping trips to dozens of national parks in the US, Europe, and South America. The walls of his home are filled with his photographs from the Galapagos Islands, Antarctica, the Arctic Circle, and Africa. After retiring at age 72, Bartlett cultivated a new mission to remove as many non-native cedar trees as he could at his lake house property.

After his retirement Bartlett wrote a memoir in which he reflected that his motto was accommodation, not confrontation. “I love the building process but arguing, feuding, fussing, fighting, claiming, and suing are not building… when we think of ministry, we think of the clergy, but each one of us can be and is a minister. Care and concern and kind words are ministry.”

A memorial service will take place at Christ Episcopal Church, 510 Belknap Place, at 11:00 am on Friday, September 8 with The Rev. Patrick Gahan and The Rev. Scott Kitayama officiating. You may watch the livestream https://www.cecsa.org/live-stream. The family is grateful for devoted caregivers Sherri, Terri, Julie, Lety, Wendy, Elaine, Ophelia, and Maria, and for Dr. Neela Patel and Heart of Texas Hospice personnel Adrianna, Ally, and Madison.

Bartlett would be honored for gifts in his memory to go to:

Christ Episcopal Church510 Belknap Place, San Antonio, Texas 78212 https://www.cecsa.org/giving, or

Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children603 E. Hildebrand Avenue, San Antonio, Texas 78212https://sunshinecottage.org/.