Bill Moreau

Billy Joseph (Bill) Moreau, Jr.

2/28/34-12/21/24

Born in Dallas, Texas, Billy Joseph Moreau, Jr., was the only child of Susan Elizabeth Moreau née Purvis and Billy Joseph Moreau, Sr, also known as Lionel Moreau, of Faribault, Minnesota. He spent his childhood and youth in northeast Texas, attending grade school in Atlanta and graduating from Linden High School in 1952 before going on to The University of Texas, where he was a forerunner in the five-year plan in pursuit of his four-year degree in Civil Engineering, graduating with over 240 hours in a variety of academic fields.

While at the University, he met his Tyler rose, Mary Etta Allen, and they were married in July 1958. After trying several cities, they settled in Lufkin in 1963, with children Billy III and Elizabeth, where Bill worked for Lufkin Industries. In 1965, Marcella was born and made the Moreau family complete. In 1976, Bill formed a small engineering and construction company which grew into East Texas Engineering and Surveying, Inc. The firm’s primary business was infrastructure for small cities and towns of east Texas. The company was also awarded what was at that time the largest private surveying project ever in the state of Texas when a local timber firm purchased all the timberlands owned by an out of state firm. In 1999, ETES was acquired by a major Houston engineering firm.

As a professional civil engineer, Bill served four years as the President of the Texas Chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Additionally, he served on the ASCE National Committee on Ethics, as well as various other state and national ASCE committees. Bill also sat on an advisory committee for the Civil Engineering Department of the University of Texas. His accomplishment in the work of his profession was the fruit of his long-standing tenet: anything worth doing is worth doing right. In 2001, he was given the Award of Honor for exemplary service to the general public through his professional work by the Texas Chapter of ASCE. When asked about his career, however, he often replied simply that he was in the “transportation of used food” business.

It is not possible to sum up a man’s life in a few words, for a man is revealed by the life he lives day in and day out. To know Bill, one must know he awakened every morning at 4:45 to spend quiet time with Jesus Christ in study and prayer. After retirement, he decided Jesus didn’t mind him sleeping a bit later, but his daily devotional time continued throughout his life. Once Mary Etta went to work outside of the home, he made breakfast for the family every morning to give her the extra time to get ready for work. For decades, he taught the Mildred Musslewhite Sunday School Class at the Methodist church, and many of Mary Etta and his most enduring friendships began there.

In truth, Bill considered his greatest accomplishment and highest priority to be his family. He was completely devoted to Mary Etta, which is not the same thing as completely agreeing with Mary Etta. Their life together was grounded in their faith in God, and they strove to live the sacrificial love of one flesh – with varying degrees of success over the years but always as their guiding principle. Their children, Billy III, Elizabeth, and Marcella, were the foci of their younger life together, and they welcomed the family’s expansion through marriages and births over the years. As an only child, Bill came to love Mary Etta’s sisters and their husbands, and following their deaths, he strove to serve as a surrogate grandfather to their grandchildren. His love for his nieces and nephews enriched his life as it did theirs.

Bill is survived by his devoted wife of 66 years, Mary Etta, and his three children, Billy Moreau III (Samorn) of Thailand, Elizabeth Moreau of Shepherd, TX, and Marcella M Moss (Tom) of Tomball, TX. In addition, Bill is survived by Patricia Moreau of Tulsa, grandchildren Paul Moreau of Dallas, Joseph Moreau, IV (Brittany) of Tulsa, and Sarah Ann Hicks (Clint) also of Tulsa and great-grandchildren Brandon, Kennedy, Kyler, and Kambrei Moreau, Joseph Moreau V and Samual Moreau, and Mila and Camden Hicks, as well as his nephews, Henry Bell and Allen Bell (Cindy) and numerous great-nieces and nephews.

Bill was preceded in death by his parents, his sisters- and brothers-in-law, and his great-granddaughter, Sawyer Ann Hicks.

Memorials may be made to Servants Feast Christian Ministry (PO Box 5614, Kingwood TX 77325; https://servantsfeast.org/support-sfcm/) or to the Bill and Mary Etta Moreau Scholarship at the UT Cockrell School of Engineering (University of Texas, Cockrell School of Engineering, Attn: Bill and Mary Etta Moreau Scholarship, PO Box 7727, Austin, TX 78713-9953).

A visitation for friends and family is being held Saturday, December 28, from 1p-3p at PineCrest Retirement Community. A memorial service will be held at a later date.