Cecil J. McFarland Jr.

Cecil Jackson McFarland, Jr. was born in Greenville, Texas on May 8, 1926 to Cecil Jackson, Sr. and Dorothy Ann Thompson. When Cecil was 12 they moved to Hillsboro, Texas. He graduated from Hillsboro High School at age 17, and enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps that fall, but wasn’t called to active duty until July, 1944. He was discharged in October, 1945, serving in the active reserves until 1950.

In the spring of 1946 he enrolled in Hillsboro Junior College, was a member of the 1947 state championship football team, and graduated in 1948. He attended the University of Texas at Austin from 1948 to 1950, withdrawing because of an eye injury. At Hillsboro Jr. College, he met the love of his life, Annie Lee Clark. Their first date was on Valentine’s Day 1947, and they married on February 29, 1952.

Cecil worked construction jobs until their 1st child, Pamela Sue, was born in 1954. Looking for something more secure, he found employment as a civil engineer in the design branch of the United States Army Corps of Engineers in Fort Worth in November 1955. Their 2nd child, Sandra Lee, was born in 1957, and they settled in Arlington, Texas. Cecil continued to work for the Corps for the next 35 years until his retirement.

Cecil was a man of great faith, and a longtime member of Lamar Baptist Church where he and Lee participated in many activities and committees. He sang in the church choir until the age of 94, stopping only because of COVID.

He always had a joke or witty saying that made others smile, and truly believed laughter was the “best medicine for what ails you.”

He will be greatly missed by all his family and friends. He is survived by 2 daughters, Pam Atkinson and Sandra Bunata; 7 grandchildren; and 3 great grandchildren.