John Emmett Nolen, III's Obituary
John Emmett Nolen, III, aged 76, of Dallas, Texas, passed away on June 14, 2019, in Dallas after battling glioblastoma (brain cancer) for a year.John was born on November 1, 1942, to John Emmett Nolen, Jr., and Miriam Elliot Nolen, in Houston, Texas, where he was raised. He graduated from Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama, where he met Ann O’Connor; they were married on May 18, 1965. He subsequently received a master’s degree from Purdue University in Indiana. Shortly thereafter, John and Ann moved back to Texas, where he began his career at IBM, which took his young family to San Jose, California, and then to Dallas. Later, he joined Trammell Crow in Dallas, where he had a long and active career.John touched the lives of many – as a husband, father, grandfather, son, businessman, and devoted friend. Most of all, he loved and cared unceasingly for his wife throughout her descent into Alzheimer’s; despite his advanced illness, he visited her for their 54th anniversary this May. He was a role model in many ways – integrity, caring, making a contribution, as well as the importance of enjoying life and having a lively sense of humor. Later in life, he became an extraordinary grandfather to his five grandchildren. He loved traveling the far corners of the world, but also the laid-back pleasures of Gulf Shores, Alabama. He enjoyed the outdoor pleasures of hunting and fly-fishing, but was also a wide-ranging reader and a devoted opera fan. Above all, his greatest joy was in simply spending time with family and friends.John is survived by his wife of 54 years, Ann; his mother, Miriam Elliot Nolen; his daughter, Susan Nolen Foushee, and her husband, Scott Foushee; his son, Stephen O’Connor Nolen, and his wife, Erin Krafft Nolen; his grandchildren, Kyle Elizabeth Nolen, Connor Jonathan Nolen, Riley James Foushee, Henry Alexander Foushee, and Kaitlyn Ann Nolen; his brothers, Thomas Elliot Nolen and Robert Durel Nolen; his brother-in-law, Claude Joseph O’Connor, Jr.; his sister-in-law, Cheryl Rost Nolen; his niece and nephew, Whitney Laine Nolen and Spencer Ryan Nolen; his great-nephews Isaac Carpio and Noah Lopez; his extended family and many close and devoted friends, whose support over the last months has been invaluable.A memorial service for John will held at 11 AM on Friday, July 12th, at Restland Memorial Chapel, 13005 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, Texas. A reception will follow at Canyon Creek Country Club, 625 West Lookout Drive, Richardson, Texas.In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the American Brain Tumor Association.
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