Arnie (Arnold) Panella, 67 of Austin, Texas, passed away far too soon on November 15, 2016. Born in Cleveland, Ohio on October 11, 1949 to Arnold and Edith H. Panella he was the oldest of three children. His strong work ethic granted him entrance into Miami University where he earned a Bachelor in Finance and Marketing and Master of Business Administration completing his education in 1972. He married his college sweetheart, Mary Jane Carse on June 19, 1971, the week after their undergraduate graduation. They were married for 45 beautiful years and survived moves to 8 different cities before settling in Austin, Texas in 1998.
In addition to his many professional accomplishments, he turned down promotions, which would have required extensive travel and time away from his family. He was an exceptional father who was involved in every aspect of his daughters lives. He golfed every Sunday and joked that, while his girls attended religious services and Sunday School, the golf course was his “church.” It was his only indulgence in a life lived for his family.
Arnie worked in the Technology Industry as a Director of Global Infrastructure. During his tenure at Dell, he was featured in Business Weekly for his leadership in innovative technology communication strategies. He was a member of Delta Upsilon Fraternity and The Hills Country Club where he deservedly reveled as a low handicap golfer. He would often call his daughters and wife on his drive home to share his golf score of the day. Before there was HGTV, there was Arnie. There was no project to extensive for him. He constructed scaffolding around our family home in Houston and sanded and painted the house. When his daughters moved into new apartments or homes he was always there to help furnish, paint, and install ceiling fans or built in bookshelves. He could do it all and took pride in his work. Becoming a father and later a “poppa” were his greatest achievements. He changed hundreds of diapers, sang, held and rocked all four grandchildren to sleep and was always the first to greet them when they awoke from sleep. He was involved in every aspect of their care and lived to make his childrens and grandchildrens lives better.
He is survived by his wife Mary Jane “M.J.”; his daughters: Elizabeth Aronson and husband Dan, Laura Reeser and husband Eric; his grandchildren: Ben, Willie, Cate, and Abigail who will miss him greatly.
A Celebration of Life will be held at 9:30am on Sunday, November 20, 2016 at Cook Walden Funeral Home, 6100 North Lamar Blvd, Austin, Texas 78752.
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