Orval E. Rhoads, 78, of Pattison, Texas passed away on August 8, 2023. Born November 1, 1944, in Conroe, Texas, he is preceded in death by his parents, Dusty and Aline Rhoads and his brother and sister-in-law, Jack and Sharon Rhoads. 

 

Orval is survived by the love of his life of 57 years, Diane Halbison Rhoads; two sons, Steven Dale Rhoads and wife, Lori Rhoads, and Rheman Michael Rhoads and wife, Alice Rhoads; five grandchildren, Ashley and husband, Forrest Beatty, Joshua, Kenneth, Emily and her husband Garrett Stavinoha, and Jessie Vitek; and two great grandchildren, Keeley Rhoads and Jonah Beatty. He is also survived by his rescue companion, Pedro.

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Orval and Diane met when they were 12, becoming sweethearts in high school. They married in September 1965, beginning a life full of love and devotion toward each other and their family. He was a wonderful husband and exemplary father to his boys. He took great care of Diane as they raised their two sons in Katy. When the boys were young, he enjoyed taking them to the deer lease to go hunting, and later working with them on rebuilding Volkswagens when they were teenagers.

 

Orval’s grandchildren and great grandchildren were his pride and joy. He was kind enough to let the girls “make him pretty”, allowing them to do everything from painting his toes to putting makeup and earrings on him. With the boys, he taught them all about farm life and would often share stories of when he was younger. Papa loved taking the kids to the zoo and for daily trips to the ice cream shop. He adored his family and would drop everything for them. His family was blessed to enjoy one final cruise with him this past June, a trip his family will forever be thankful for.

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Orval loved dancing, everything from country and western to square dancing, and just doing a jig with the kids. When he and Diane were younger, the Salty Dog Rag would come on, and he would surely tear up the floor. When the boys were little, they would sleep under the table on square dancing nights, later joining them on the dance floor. As the boys got older, the Church Lady dance became a popular request when everyone was together, as did his Donald Duck voice. Then, when his grandchildren were little, you could find them dancing and stomping around the living room when the Jungle Book song “I Wanna Be Like You” came on.

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Another great joy of Orval’s was his farm and cattle, especially his Marks Longhorns. You could often see him sitting on his balcony at the farm watching the cows in the pasture. Orval was also a math whiz and could easily calculate numbers in his head. This skill was quite handy throughout his lengthy career as a civil engineer. He loved his high school classmates in the Katy High School class of ‘63, remaining in contact with most of them through the years. He was quite blessed to see many of them recently at their class reunion.

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Orval was a faithful servant of the Lord, living his daily life as one of God’s best disciples. As with Orval’s entire life of selfless living and giving, it was important to him to be able to donate his body to McGovern Medical School. His hope was that someone could benefit from the gift of his earthly body. Well done, my good and faithful servant!

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The family would like to acknowledge and thank Vantage Hospice of Katy, along with the nurses and staff who exhibited compassion and emotional support. Also, a very special thank you to Orval’s sitters, Fannie Vasquez, Princella Lazard and Melanie Watts for their loving and tender care over the last couple of months.

 

In lieu of flowers, Orval’s family would like donations to be made to

Pattison United Methodist Church, PO Box 67, Pattison, Texas 77466-0067

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Service Information:

Saturday, August 12, 2023

Visitation: 9:00 AM

Service: 10:00 AM

Pattison UMC

3711 Avenue H

Pattison, TX