Judge Gerald A. Goodwin

Funeral services for Judge Gerald A. Goodwin of Lufkin will be held Saturday, August 6, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. in the First United Methodist Church with Dr. Jerome Brimmage officiating. Interment will follow in the Garden of Memories Memorial Park.

Judge Gerald A. Goodwin, age 76, passed away on August 3, 2016 after a courageous battle with lung cancer.

Gerald was born in Lufkin, Texas on July 6, 1940, the seventh child of the late Roy and Mary (Modisette) Goodwin. He had one brother and five sisters who continued to be very close to him in adulthood. His father was an electrician who convinced his son that education was of paramount importance to his future. As a boy, Gerald worked daily on the family farm plowing fields, peeling poles and herding goats after school. He earned the honor of Eagle Scout, having to hitch rides to and from each meeting.

After graduating from Lufkin High School in 1958, he served two terms in the US Army, which helped him pay his way through law school on the GI Bill. He attended Stephen F. Austin University while working as an employee at Lufkin Industries, Southland Paper Mill and the Lufkin State School. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1966 and married Mary Rivenbark. They had the first of two children, Robin, in 1967 and then Wendy in 1972. Gerald started the University of Houston Law School in 1968. In order to pay his tuition and support his new family, Gerald worked multiple jobs through law school including freight loading and pipefitting.

Upon graduating law school in 1971, Gerald worked as an assistant district attorney in the Harris County D.A.'s office through 1973. The infamous Judge Jimmie Duncan gave him the nickname "Pine Knot" because he was from East Texas and said that Gerald "had sawdust in his ears" due to a hearing impairment that made it difficult for him to hear court proceedings. Gerald was happy to return to his hometown in 1974 as an assistant district attorney in Angelina County. He then succeeded the late Federal Judge John Hannah as the district attorney in 1975 and served in this position until 1990. During his tenure, he prosecuted hundreds of felony jury trials and three capital murder trials. Colleagues recall Gerald as being one of the best DA's and trial lawyers in Texas and he was proud of the fact that he could connect with so many jurors due to his humble background, diverse work experience and interest of people from all walks of life. In 1990 he was appointed as District Judge of the 159th Judicial District in Angelina County, succeeding Judge David Walker. After 10 years in this position, he served as a Senior District Judge until 2003, helping where needed in courts throughout East Texas. He briefly "retired", working in private practice with long-time friend, George Chandler, often taking cases pro-bono to help those who could not afford to pay a lawyer. He later came out of retirement to serve as judge for Angelina County's "rocket-docket", designed to cut down on the jail population. Through his career, he served as Director for the Texas District and County Attorney's Association, President of the Angelina County Peace Officers Association, a member of the Board of Control of the East Texas Peace Officers Association, the National District Attorney's Association, the State Bar of Texas, the Judiciary Section of the State Bar of Texas and President of the Angelina County Bar Association.

Despite his busy career, Gerald always made time to dedicate to his two daughters, spending countless hours as a 4-H leader helping them and other children with livestock projects, youth rodeos, scholarship fundraisers and more. He often quoted to his girls that "the true measure of a man is the quality of his children". As reflected by many public speeches that he gave to various organizations and graduation ceremonies, he was eternally grateful for the opportunity that America gives to those who work hard, particularly to a young barefoot boy who herded goats and later graduated from law school. Gerald made it his mission to help other children and often counseled troubled youth in his courtroom, convincing them that they could do better. He served as Round Up Chairman for the Boy Scouts of America, Region V Director for the Texas High School Rodeo Association, Director for the Angelina County Peace Officer's Youth Rodeo, Lufkin ISD Task Force on School Violence, Board of Director of the Angelina County Exposition Center and Chairman of the Angelina County Chamber of Commerce Law Enforcement Committee. He was also a notorious judge for various Chili Competitions around East Texas. He was the recipient of the Angelina County Golden Anvil Award and the Rotary Club Paul Harris Award.

Survivors include his wife of 50 years, Mary (Rivenbark) Goodwin of Lufkin; daughter and son-in-law, Robin and Joe Collmorgen of Lufkin; daughter, Dr. Wendy Goodwin of Dallas; grandchildren, Julia and Helena Collmorgen, Sofia Murgola, and Thaxton and Mira Mathur; brother, Royce Goodwin of Rock Hill, South Carolina; sisters, Elizabeth (Boots) Reese of Houston, Sue Raney of Lufkin and Mary Jo Morris of New Braunfels; sister and brother-in-law, Betty and Ron Gulledge of New Braunfels; special nieces, Veta Redmond and Randa Langerud; numerous other nieces, nephews, relatives and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents and sister, Irma Lee O’Bryan.

Pallbearers will be Joe Collmorgen, David Collmorgen, Richard Collmorgen, Erik Langerud, Sanjay Mathur and Peter Murgola.

Honorary pallbearers will be Judge Michael Schneider, Judge Joe Ned Dean, Wade Jabbour, Judge Paul White, Judge David Wilson, Judge David Walker, Judge Bob Inselman, Jerry Wayne Patterson, Herb Hancock, Claude E. Welch and George Chandler.

Special thanks to the loving care of Hospice in the Pines and Dr. Sean Moran. Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice in the Pines, 1504 W. Frank Ave., Lufkin, Texas 75904.

The family will welcome friends and loved ones from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Friday evening at the funeral home.

Memories and condolences may be added at www.carrowayfuneralhome.com.
Carroway Funeral Home, Lufkin, directors.