Claude L. Hooker's Obituary
Claude L. Hooker was born in Albany, Texas on January 30, 1919 to Maude and Silas . Hooker. He passed away on February 22, 2019. He was preceded in death by his wife Etta Marie, his son Donald Louis, parents, his sisters, Blanche and Billie Jean, and brother James Lee. He graduated from Albany High School in 1936 and received a BBA degree from Texas Tech College in 1940, where he was a member of the Accounting Society. He worked his way through college by cutting and stacking prickly pear cactus on numerous ranches in Shackleford County. , · Claude L. was drafted into the army in 1941, attending officers’ candidate school in 1942. He was assigned to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas where he met his future wife, Etta Marie Bartels. They were married on June 5, 1943. The marriage lasted over 72 years. He served in Europe during World War II and in Korea and Vietnam. While serving in the Army, he received an MS degree from Columbia University and was a member of Beta Gamma Sigma. He received an MS degree in Logistics Management from Air Force Institute of Technology. He also graduated from the Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, the Army Medical Service Advanced Course and the Army Supply Management Course. He retired in 1972 as a Colonel in the Army Medical Service Corps. He received the Legion of Merit Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Bronze Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Meritorious Service Medal and thirteen service medals. While serving on the faculty at the Medical Field Service School, he was an Assistant Professor of Hospital Administration at Baylor University, Waco, Texas. Upon retirement, he accepted a position as Director, Materiel Services at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas. While serving at Baylor University Medical Center, he became a Certified Purchasing Manager and a Fellow with the American Society for Hospitals Materials Management. While stationed in France in 1965, he took up square dancing. He was a lifetime member of the Stonesteppers Square Dance Club, and served as Treasurer for two years. Since his retirement from Baylor University Medical Center in 1988, he had been an active volunteer. He was an AARP Income Tax Counselor for 27 tax years, a driver for Meals On-Wheels for 27 years, a counselor for the Mesquite Alert Program for 18 years, a benefits counselor for the Dallas Area Agency for Aging for 5 years, and a volunteer at the Baylor Emergency Room for 26 years, with an accumulation of over 9500 hours. He became a Master Mason in the Mesquite Lodge 928 at the age of 71. He was an active member of the First United Methodist Church, Mesquite, Texas, where he served as Chairman of the Finance Committee for four years and as a member of that Committee for 25 years. He served as Chairman of the Administrative Board for two years, Lay Leader for three years, and Chairman of the Pastor-Parish Committee for three years. He was a member of a team that counted the money on Monday mornings for 27 years. He received the Heritage Award from his Church in 2015 for his dedicated service to the Church and to the Mesquite community. He served as Chairman of Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Purchasing Advisory Committee for two years, He was a member of American Legion Post 504 and Disabled American Veterans Chapter 175. He is survived his children Claude Jr. and wife Susan, Jack Hulen, and Kenneth Lee, and his sisters-in-law Frankie Bartels of San Antonio, Texas and Gladys Hooker of Houston, Texas In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Renovation Fund, First United Methodist Church, 300 N. Galloway, Mesquite, TX 75149.Funeral Services will be held Friday, March 1, 2019 at 10:30 a.m., at First United Methodist Church, 300 N. Galloway, Mesquite, TX 75149. Burial will follow at Dallas Fort Worth National Cemetery.
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