W. C. McClellan

W. C. McClellan died on June 22, 2010, at the age of 88. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Dr. Patricia Ann McClellan, a long-time teacher/administrator in the Lamar Consolidated Independent School District; by his sister, Loraine Sybil Heaser; by two daughters, Marian McClellan Latham and Lorene Renie McClellan; his eldest son, Cole McClellan, and his "six-year-old" twins, Clark McClellan and Casey McClellan; and his two beloved grandchildren, Catherine Latham Ricketson and William Clark McClellan, II. Two sons, William Morrison McClellan, II and Philip Evan McClellan, predeceased him in 1986 and 2001, respectively. Bill and Pat McClellan have been members of St. John's United Methodist Church for nearly 60 years. Bill served his nation in WWII as a Navy Lieutenant in the Pacific theatre, serving as a commander of LCT 736. He remained an officer in the Naval Reserve through 1960. After the war, he married Patricia and the two of them lived three years in Hawaii, where they had their first two children. They moved to Austin, Texas, where Bill received an advanced degree in Physical Education from the University of Texas, before settling the growing family in Richmond. In addition to UT, Bill also attended Notre Dame's Naval Officer Training School, and Southern Methodist in Dallas. But the school closest to his heart was always Tarleton State in Stephenville, Texas, where he first went to college. Coach Mac, as most nearly everyone in the Richmond-Rosenberg area knew him, began his long and successful career in public school education in 1951 as a teacher and coach at the newly-created Lamar Consolidated High School. Coach Mac became the first baseball and basketball coach for the Mustangs. He led the 1952-53 Mustang baseball team to an undefeated season, becoming the only Lamar coach to have accomplished that feat. His basketball teams compiled a record of 154 victories to 49 defeats over his 15-year coaching career. As magnificent a coach as he was, he was at heart a teacher who believed in the necessity of developing not only the minds, but the mind-set of his students. Displayed prominently on his desk was thought from John Gray, "Developing the mind is important but developing a conscience is the most precious gift that can be given to a child." After retiring from teaching in 1972, Bill McClellan continued his service to the public school system and LCISD by serving eight years on the School Board of Trustees in the 1990's. In 1972, Bill McClellan moved on to the real estate and cattle businesses with the same vigor and vitality he had displayed as a teacher and coach. He was responsible for much of the development west of the "S" curve on Band Road, parts of Hartledge Road, and all of the Twins Lane development off of Zunker Road. With his wife's assistance, he also built many of the homes along Marian Lane and Philip Evan Boulevard. Bill simultaneously developed his own breed of cow, the "Smooth Black", and had property and cattle interests all around the state, from Angelina and Cherokee counties in East Texas, to Limestone, Hill, and Navarro counties in Central Texas, and to McMullen County in South Texas. In addition to that, for many years he moved Registered Angus cattle from Missouri to the Gulf Coast area, eventually establishing a ranch near Osceola, Missouri, and with Patricia, even owned and operated a hotel in Osceola. Bill McClellan was distraught when he was forced by the vicissitudes of life to leave the Rosenberg-Richmond area for the "frozen north" as he called it, but it was really only the Dallas area in 2008. He came to terms with move, but he never thought of it as anything more than his "so-called home" as he would say. Though the years did take his memory, he never forgot his friends and his love for the area and the people of Rosenberg and Richmond and he is, I know, happy to be home. The family will receive friends from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m., Friday, June 25, 2010 in the Chapel of Davis-Greenlawn Funeral Home in Rosenberg. The funeral service will be held at 10:00 a.m., Saturday, June 26, 2010 at St. John's United Methodist Church in Richmond with Pastor David Luckert officiating. Burial, with military honors, will follow at Greenlawn Memorial Park in Rosenberg.

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W. C. McClellan

February 1, 1922 - June 22, 2010