Jack Ousley Moore

December 4, 1922 – January 23, 2021

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Jack Ousley Moore, 98 years old, passed peacefully into God’s loving care at home in Houston, Texas, on Saturday, January 23rd, surrounded by family.

“Triplets, and All Boys” declared the Brownwood newspaper when Jack was born on December 4, 1922, in Clio, Brown County, Texas. The triplets, Jack, Joe and Jene joined their five other five siblings. The Moore family lived far from town, so their father, Lawrence Moore, delivered all three babies, each weighing around eight pounds.

Sadly, one of the triplets, Joe, died as a young boy, but the identical twins, Jack and Jene, continued through life as best friends and constant companions. They enrolled in Texas A&M together in 1941 and they enlisted in the army together in December, 1941. Both Jack and Jene became officers and served in the Philippines where Jack became company commander. They attended the famous Aggie Muster on the island of Corregidor on April 21, 1946, and are in the iconic photo of that occasion. After the war, the twins returned to A&M to graduate with the class of 1945 and then ranched with their father and older brother on the Moore Brothers Ranch in Schleicher County. Even as adults, Jack and Jene looked exactly the same and there are countless family stories of friends, and even family, confusing them.

It was in Eldorado, Texas, where the handsome rancher, Jack, met the beautiful new English teacher, Pat Keffer, and they were married in 1951. They welcomed three children into their lives over the next four years. Life’s adventures took the family to San Angelo, Texas; Brownfield, Texas; Rolling Fork, Mississippi; Columbus, Texas; Christoval, Texas; and Houston.

Jack was one of a kind — always true to his family and ever faithful to God. A man of few words, you knew what he believed by the way he lived. With the quiet stoicism of a West Texas rancher, he was selfless, generous, kind, thoughtful, and loving, as family and friends can well attest. He was completely dedicated to his beloved wife throughout their 68 years together. One of their favorite things to do in retirement was to hop in their car with their Schnoodle and drive from West Texas to Maryland, to Maine and to Indiana to spend weeks with their children and grandchildren.

Another hallmark of their lives together was not only their steadfast faith in God, but their commitment to the church community wherever they lived. In the small parish of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Columbus, Texas, Jack was on the vestry and a lay reader, Pat played the organ, Celeste and Sarah sang in the choir and Marshall was an acolyte. When the Moores were out of town on Sunday, they were missed! If for some reason the family couldn’t attend church, Jack and Pat would say Morning Prayer together with their children.

Jack was also unique in that he never wanted to pay someone to do anything he could do himself. Having grown up on a ranch, he knew how to operate and maintain machinery and handle the plumbing and electrical work. He could fix almost anything and usually did.

Jack is survived by his three children, Celeste (Richard) Hillard, Sarah (Jeff) McParland and Marshall Johnson (Erika) Moore; his five grandchildren, Joseph Frederick Hilliard, Sarah Rachel Hilliard, Morgan Elizabeth Moore, John Michael McParland and Catherine Conway McParland. He was preceded in death by his wife, Patsy Ruth Keffer Moore, his parents Lula Edith Small and Lawrence Moore, and brothers and sisters Henry George Moore, Vida (Moore) Kreklow, Celeste (Moore) Carson, Charles Kennedy Moore, Geneva (Moore) Hardeman, Joe Turner Moore and Jene Willet Moore.

With grateful hearts, the family thanks Jack’s loving caregivers who made him so comfortable and brought him such joy: Adrianna, Angie, Carla, Lety, Mina, Pat, Sunnie, and Vera.

A memorial service will be held at the Church of St. John the Divine, 2450 River Oaks Boulevard, Houston, TX 77019 on Saturday, February 13, at 11:00 a.m. Guests are welcome and will follow the virus protocol of the church. The service will also be online at sjd.org/moore, live and recorded. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial gifts be made to Amazing Place in Houston, TX, whose mission is to empower lives disrupted by dementia and where Jack’s beloved wife enjoyed many wonderful days. amazingplacehouston.org