A hero among men, Jack Carl Serres, 81, of Humble, Texas, passed away all too soon for his adoring family on May 9, 2017.
A native Houstonian, Jack was born to parents Raymond Joseph Serres and Nonnie Lee Serres on March 12, 1936, and thus began a lifetime spent bringing happiness to those who knew him. Jack graduated from Smiley High School in 1955. He joined the United States Army in 1956, serving with pride until 1958. Jack then married his soul mate, Betty Jane, and spent the next 59 years in love with her. He excelled in his work for Southwestern Bell until his retirement in 1986.
In fact, Jack excelled in just about anything he decided to do. He enjoyed photography, gardening, painting, building, and creating. He could grill the best hamburgers in Texas and every holiday was his favorite. He would do anything his children or grandchildren asked of him, from coaching football to building sets for his grandchildren’s high school plays to doing the brunt work for school projects. Jack took care of what needed to be done, whether that was wildlife rehabilitation, auto mechanics, horse whispering, or dabbling in lawyering here and there. The man was literally a Jack of all trades. He was the fixer, known for “Serres-erizing” anything and everything in need of repair.
Jack is survived by his beloved wife, his daughter Carla Serres and husband Donald Sommermayer, son Jack Serres, Jr. and wife Joann, daughter Tammy James and husband Sonny, son William “Bo” Serres and fiancee Tammy Franko, and numerous other loving family members and friends, including his sister Dorris Lee Abdelkhaleq, 19 grandchildren, 34 great grandchildren, devoted labrador Boots, and his cherished great granddaughter Chasity “Charlie” Bailey.
Jack took great joy in the thought of meeting again his dear son Ben Serres in Heaven, as well as his parents and granddaughter Starla Webb.
Jack was a giant of a man in heart and spirit. His presence will be missed by so many. But we will strive to remember - “don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” We will remember him in our hearts forever, as “memory is a way of holding on to the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose.”