John Herman Koester

John H. Koester, 85, of Bryan, went to be with the Lord on Wednesday, April 11, 2012. Visitation will be held on Friday, April 13, from 5:30 to 7:00pm at Memorial Funeral Chapel in Bryan, Texas. A memorial service to celebrate his life is set for 2:00pm on Saturday, April 14, at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in College Station. A graveside burial will follow at Bryan City Cemetery with a reception following at the church.

John was born April 29, 1926 to the late Herman and Frieda Koester in Riesel, Texas where he attend Trinity Lutheran School and graduated from Riesel High School in 1943 where he played football. He then served in the United States Army as a Technical Sergeant in the 7th Signal Company touring the Philippines and Korea. After his military service he returned home and enrolled at Texas A&M, graduating with a B.S. degree in Agricultural Engineering in August 1950.

On September 3, 1949, he married Lawana Davis, his beloved wife of 50 years. On October 2, 1950, their oldest daughter, Janice Lynn was born, to be followed in 1952 by the birth of their daughter, Joan Elizabeth. After they were married, John went to work for the Agriculture Department of Conservation in San Benito, Texas. In 1950, he obtained a job with Portland Cement Association in Austin, Texas as a Field Engineer where he remained until 1965. In 1965 he was transferred to St. Louis, Missouri as the District Engineer for Portland Cement Association. In 1966, John was offered a position in Bryan, Texas with H & A Construction Co. with Price Hobgood and William Allen. John later became a partner in the firm and full owner of Hakco Precast . Among his many accomplishments as CEO of Hakco were numerous projects, including work on Reed Arena, Bryan Municipal Building, British Petroleum, Shriner’s Hospital, Houston Children’s Museum, and 1600 Smith Street in Houston. John was a member of the Texas Society of Professional Engineers for over 50 years and recognized for outstanding service to the State of Texas. He was also a charter member of the Structural Engineering Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers. He also belonged to the Association of Former Students of Texas A&M for more than 55 years and was an avid Aggie sports fan.

One of his major loves in life was his church, Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in College Station, Texas where he was a founding member, serving on the church council for many years. John’s family and friends are grateful to him for sharing with us his kindness, compassion, wisdom and love for his family. We have many fond memories of times spent with him vacationing on Texas lakes and enjoying the outdoors boating and fishing with family and friends.

John is preceded in death by his wife, Lawana Merle Koester. He is survived by his wife, Burt Young-Koester of Bryan, Texas who brought much joy and levity to the last ten years of his life. Other survivors include his two daughters and son-in-laws, Janice and Grover Vos of Warrenton, Virignia, and Joan and Dale Ison of College Station, Texas; grandchildren, Gordon Vos, Cecily Vos, Brandon Cockrell and Matthew Ison; and five great-grandchildren; his brother and wife, James and Ruth Koester of Riesel, Texas and their children, Pam, Sharon and Darrell; and step-children, Sydney LeNoir, Lesley Bekendam, Cristy Boucher and John S. Young, Jr.

Pallbearers include Dale Ison, Grover Vos, Gordon Vos, Brandon Cockrell, Matthew Ison, Darrell Koester and John S. Young.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made in his memory to Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church, 1007 Krenek Tap Road, College Station, Texas 77840. (www.beautiful-savior.net).