Roland Frank Hankins made it to the finish line at the age of 82, on Tuesday, July 19, 2022. He was a husband, father, grandfather, son, brother, uncle, cousin, friend, teacher, and believer in Christ.
Anyone that knew him understood that Roland cared deeply for his family and friends. He was faithful, hard-working, kind, amazing with numbers and always made life fun. Roland loved to joke. He never met a stranger and kept in touch with friends over the span of 78 years. That is the kind of man he was, and the family takes great comfort in knowing that Roland is now in the arms of Christ.
Born to Glenn and Laverna Hankins on January 29, 1940, Roland grew up in Indianapolis, where he enjoyed family, friends, and participation in high school sports. He ran cross country and played on the high school baseball and basketball teams. He had many stories from this season of life one of which is when the cross-country boys got caught by the coach playing basketball instead of running. He and his life-long buddies drove around town going to drive-in theatres and turning the car heater on in the summer to see who would surrender first. Roland’s friends were heaven sent. After high school, he joined the Navy. He loved serving his country with pride and spent time aboard the USS Intrepid and the USS Essex completing many tours and duties throughout Europe, the Atlantic Ocean, and North Sea. After the Navy, he attended Indiana Central College and Indiana University where he met his loving and deeply devoted wife, Jo Ann Walters.
Roland and Jo Ann were married for 54 years and members at River Bend Baptist Church. Soon after their marriage, they moved to Florida where they spent many days boiling shrimp on the beach and watching the Apollo Rockets launch from their boat with their beloved basset hounds. After watching the launches, Roland developed a love for all things rocketry and NASA and even started an annual event called “Rocket Day” with his Young Astronauts Club. Roland and Jo Ann were blessed to raise three children in Indiana and Texas. He was a very devoted father to his children and many times coached their youth sports. It brought him tremendous joy watching his grandchildren in various activities. He spent nearly 40 years teaching 1000s upon 1000s of students in Florida, Indiana, and Texas. Being a teacher was his passion, and he was a very talented one. It was not uncommon for him to bump into adult students and for them to thank him for being their best teacher ever. He made a huge and positive impact.
Roland is preceded in death by his parents Glenn and Laverna and daughter, Joy. He is survived by his wife Jo Ann; children: Jane Stephenson (+Scott), Laura Fleming (Steve), Chris Hankins (Jackie); grandchildren: Matthew, Dillon, Katelyn, Mackenzie, Jonathan, and Evan. He is also survived by his brother, Eddie Hankins, his sister Sandra Walters, and numerous family and life-long friends.
A memorial service will be held on Friday, July 29, at 11:00 am, in the Rio Grande Chapel of Katy Funeral Home, 23350 Kingsland Boulevard, Katy, Texas 77494.
SHARE OBITUARYSHARE
v.1.11.5