Timothy Alan Attaway's Obituary
One of my pastors asked me if I intended to write my own obituary. The question caught me off guard, because I didn’t know that people wrote their own obituaries. After giving it some thought, however, it made sense, because who better knows my history than me.
Harold Attaway met Lois Rainbolt at the First Baptist Church of Tulsa. They got married there. In due time, they gave birth to my older brother, Andy.
Then in 1952, my father took a new job, which was located in Dallas. The young family packed up and moved to Dallas. At that time, my mother was expecting me. She stayed in Dallas long enough to get a home set up for the family, then when her due date was approaching, she headed back to Tulsa so that she could be close to her parents, as they would be a great help in caring for Andy while she was in the hospital and caring for three of us after she was released. On November 22, I arrived. Mom and Andy and I remained in Tulsa until shortly after Christmas. I have no idea how many trips my Dad must have made back and forth between Dallas and Tulsa during that time. The point of all of this is that although I was born in Tulsa, I never lived there. Dallas (and the surround suburbs) are would be my home most of my life.
Early on, my family lived in the Lakewood section of Dallas. We were members of Lakewood Baptist Church. About the time that I was ready to start school, we moved over to the Lake Highlands area of the city, where my parents lived the rest of their lives. When I was in the 4th grade, we moved our church membership to Park Cities Baptist Church, which would be my church home for a significant portion of my life. It was there that I met a girl named Robin Gregory. It was there that I married Robin Gregory. Less than two years after we married, my job moved us to Atlanta. Four years later my job moved us back to Dallas. In 2000, my job moved us to New Jersey. Two years later we moved back.
I attended Lake Highlands Elementary, Lake Highlands Junior High, Lake Highlands High, Stephen F. Austin State. University (freshman year only), North Texas State University (now UNT), which is where I got my B.S. in mathematics. I did my master’s degree at the University of Texas at Dallas. Later I also attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
My first job out of college was teaching math back at Lake Highlands High School. I spent most of my career in various capacities in the world of software development, most of that time managing teams of developers. I spent four years as an associate pastor. I also taught classes from time to time at various colleges, including The King’s College, whose campus was entirely in the Empire State Building.
Robin and I raised two great children. Gregory was born in 1979 and Merideth in 1981. I have done a great many things in my life, but my time with them and with Robin was the best. The road trips that we took over the years have provided some of the fondest memories of our times together.
I have dealt with serious health issues throughout my life. When I was a senior in high school, I was found to have Hodgkins Lymphoma, a cancer of the lymphatic system. I had to undergo radiation therapy, and missed the better part of nine weeks of school. Then for the last few years, I have had multiple surgeries for heart valve problems. One of those surgeries shut down my kidneys, so I have been a dialysis patient for several years. Philippians For 1:21 says, “For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” I have been straddling that fence long enough. For me, it is time for the gain.
Tim is survived by his wife, Robin, his children, Gregory and Merideth, his daughter-in-law, Sandra, his brother, Andy, his sister, Laurie Claybrook, his sister-in-law, Linda, his brother-in-law, Craig Claybrook, and a slew of nieces and nephews
What’s your fondest memory of Timothy?
What’s a lesson you learned from Timothy?
Share a story where Timothy's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Timothy you’ll never forget.
How did Timothy make you smile?