Richard Overall "Dick" Wilson

Dick was born on the 3rd of February 1930 in Coleman, Texas and then spent his childhood in Guatemala where Spanish was his primary language. In 1943 at age 13, he returned to Texas and attended Lampasas High School where he graduated as Valedictorian in 1948. He was then sent by the United States Navy to Rice University as a midshipman in the Regular NROTC program. He graduated as a Civil Engineer from Rice where he was a member of Tau Beta Pi, the Honorary Engineering Society. At Rice he met his lifetime best friend Mary Ellen Kinzbach, and they were married in Houston, Texas on the 27th of December 1952.

Dick was commissioned in the United States Marine Corps, and served from June 1952 to June 1955. He was in Korea from May 1953 to May 1954 where he was assigned to the First Combat Engineer Battalion and was stationed on the front lines through the remaining duration of the war. After the truce, his Battalion rebuilt the Marine’s portion of the frontline and created a portion of the DMZ that stands to this day.

After his Marine Corps service, Dick returned to Rice and in 1956 embarked on a career in the then emerging offshore energy construction field. Among many firsts, he worked on Aluminum Platforms in Lake Maracaibo, the first Structures and Floating Drilling in the Gulf of Paria, the North Sea where he oversaw the development, construction and installation of the first Hydrocarbon Structures, the first Platforms in Angola, and the first Structure and Pipeline in the Bay of Campeche. He was also responsible for projects in Guanabara Bay and the offshore Ilheus in Brazil, the West African Coast, the Arabian Gulf, the Northwest Shelf of Australia, the South China Sea off Borneo, and Mexico.

His many industry contributions were recognized when he was inducted into the Offshore Energy Center’s Industry Pioneers Hall of Fame in 2000.

He held Senior Officer positions and Directorships in Brown & Root, Halliburton Services, Dolphin Drilling, AOC and OGC in the United Kingdom, CCC in Mexico, and Directorships in Callon Petroleum and Flotek Industries in the United States.

Over the years, Dick and Mary Ellen and their children lived in Venezuela, Trinidad, Brazil, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Mexico. They also traveled extensively and developed many long lasting relationships here in Texas and all over the globe. When in Houston, Dick organized many Rice University Class of ‘52 reunions, meetings and fundraising efforts. In 2007, he received a Meritorious Award for Service to Rice. Many other organizations also benefited from Dick and Mary Ellen Wilson’s philanthropic endeavors including the Friends of Fondren Library and Woodson Research Center both at Rice University, Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas, The Printing Museum in Houston, and Faith in Practice - a medical mission serving the Mayan population in Guatemala.

He is survived by his beloved wife of 67 years Mary Ellen Kinzbach Wilson; his sister Peggy Ann Macha and husband Laddie; his sister-in-law Harriett Morrow and husband Dewitt; his five children Richard Overall Wilson Jr. (Pamela Ford Wilson), Mary Kathryn Wilson Luck (Oliver Francis Luck), Robert Wyman Wilson (Karyn Wooten Clinch), Margaret Ann Wilson Sturm (Timothy Sturm), and William Chandler Wilson (Maxine Peel Wilson); his sixteen grandchildren Robby Wilson, Andrew Luck (Nicole Pechanec), Katie Wilson (Shawn Robinson), Mary Ellen Luck, Lucia Wilson (William Baird), Tom Sturm (Samantha Calvetti), Reid Wilson, Emily Luck, Henry Sturm (Leah Nash), Ringo Wilson, Addison Luck, Amanda Sturm, Claire Wilson, Owen Wilson, Ely Wilson, Olivia Wilson, and many other relatives and friends in Texas and around the world.

Mary Ellen would like to express a special thank you to Yaneth Matute and Christina Gonzalez for their kind and compassionate care during these past years.

The memorial service and celebration of Richard’s life is to be conducted at four o’clock in the afternoon on Wednesday, the 6th of March, in the Jasek Chapel of Geo. H. Lewis & Sons, 1010 Bering Drive in Houston. Immediately following, all are invited to greet the family during a reception in the adjacent grand foyer.

In lieu of customary remembrances, memorial contributions may be directed to Faith in Practice by visiting www.faithinpractice.org or the Woodson Research Center at Rice University by visiting

http://giving.rice.edu.