Joseph Edmund Brittain

Funeral services for Joseph Edmund Brittain, 101, of Hudson, Texas will be held Sunday, May 15, 2022, at 3:00 p.m. at Christ Congregational Church with Reverend Randy Green officiating.  Interment will follow in the Old Union Cemetery.

Mr. Brittain was born July 23, 1920, in Lufkin, Texas, to the late Ruth (Jones) Brittain and Otto Brittain, and died Saturday, May 7, 2022 at his residence.

Joe was a proud resident of Lufkin, Texas. He lived in Lufkin his entire life except for his service during World War II and immediately thereafter, and a 14-year stint at the Houston office of Champion International paper company, during which he missed East Texas every day.

Joe cherished his memories of living on Mantooth Avenue where he would walk home for lunch from school, sometimes being stopped and summoned inside his great grandmother’s house to be fed. He, his brother, and their friends, set up a stand to sell cold Cokes for a nickel, but were also known to drink the merchandise. He helped build the new family home and barn on “Brittain Hill” in Hudson, and enjoyed many adventures farming and playing with his six siblings. When war broke out, he left the “Hill” to serve in the U.S. Army 358 ^th Quartermaster Service Company. After his honorable discharge from the Army, he returned overseas to Casablanca, Morocco, to work for the Atlas Construction Company. Upon his return to Lufkin, he could be seen driving his Mercury and hanging around the parking meter in front of Petty’s. His bachelor days ended the day he met his future bride, Dixie Bell of Gallatin, Tennessee. He settled comfortably into family life and he and Dixie welcomed a daughter, Ruth.

Joe enjoyed family gatherings on Sundays, walks with his “girls” and being a part-time farmer and gardener. He especially loved the Brittain family July 4 ^th barbecue, which began when he was a child and still continues. He transitioned from helper, to head cook, to “supervisor-in-charge” over his lifetime. Joe loved spending time with family, whether it was picking mayhaws with his brothers-in-law, laughing with his sisters, chopping firewood with his nephew or traveling around the country with Dixie. His favorite family times were spent with his precious granddaughters, taking lunch to them at school, wading in the creek, jumping on hay bales, flying kites and even polishing toenails.

Joe was a graduate of Lufkin High School, Class of 1938, and attended Stephen F. Austin State University and Texas A&M University, where in true Aggie fashion he hitchhiked back and forth between College Station and Lufkin. He was a member of First United Methodist Church of Lufkin. Joe sold newsprint for Perkins-Goodwin Company and Champion International, and developed numerous life-long friendships and a love of newspapers during his 30-year career. Joe was an active member of the Senior Kiwanis Club, and enjoyed the community programs and fund-raising activities.

Survivors include his wife, Dixie Bell Brittain of Hudson; daughter, Ruth Brittain Chinn and husband Ted of Mesquite; grandchildren, Elaine Brittain Chinn, Laura Katherine Chinn and Hannah Grace Chinn; sister, Betty Lou Brittain Jumper and husband Bob of Hudson; and numerous beloved nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews, and great-great-nieces and great-great nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; sisters and their spouses, Ruth Brittain Dixon and Poskey, Louise Brittain Lindsey and Billy, Joyce Brittain Hooser and Tom, Patricia Brittain Brown and Joe; and brother and spouse Otto Jordan Brittain and Zaidee.

Pallbearers will be Paul Root, Allen Brittain, Joe Brittain, Jordan Brittain, Ethan Brown and Marcus Brown.

Memorial contributions may be made to Old Union Cemetery Association, 461 S. FM 1194, Lufkin, Texas 75904, or Hospice in the Pines, 1504 W. Frank Avenue, Lufkin, Texas 75904.

The family wishes to extend its deepest gratitude to caregivers Elton Arnold, Courtney Mosby, Zenobia Horn, Gwen Thompson and Crystal Arnold as well as to Hospice in the Pines.

The family will welcome friends and loved ones from 2:00-3:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon prior to the service in the Parish Hall of the church.

Memories and condolences may be added at www.carrowayfuneralhome.com.

Carroway Funeral Home, Lufkin, directors.