Hugh Lawson Collett

Hugh Lawson Collett, age 92, passed away in Elgin, South Carolina on January 12, 2021. The eighth child and sixth son of Walter Wenstead Collett, and his wife, Nola Jane Hunter, Hugh was born on November 4, 1928 in Luttrell, Tennessee. He was preceded in death by his life-long love and wife of sixty-seven years, Roberta Jean Wilson.

A graduate of Normandy High School in St. Louis, Missouri, Hugh enlisted in the Navy at age seventeen. He served in Honolulu, Hawaii as a supply clerk during World War II, and returned to St. Louis, where he met Roberta when he began working in personnel management at Emerson Electric.

Hugh was a graduate of St. Louis University and went on to a successful career in human resources and mediation, taking the family briefly to Arkansas and for a more extended time to Oklahoma.

Hugh’s love for life manifested itself not only in his lifelong passion for his wife, but his devotion to family generally, and his unfailing support of the St. Louis Cardinals. He loved golf, ice cream (and sweets generally), as well as gardening and the local St. Louis brew, Budweiser. He was a fan of music, but particularly loved Roger Miller, Frank Sinatra, and Bing Crosby.

When asked what he wanted his family to learn from him, Hugh said, “I think integrity; you keep your nose clean. I'm not talking about perfect . . . but you know what honesty is. Honesty and love of your Creator.”

His children and grandchildren remember there was “never a shortage of fun activities with Grandpa” – whether learning to golf, fish, or drive a stick shift with the old truck at the farm.

Hugh and Roberta moved to Minnesota in the final few years of their life together, after Hugh was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, to be closer to Bob and Teresa, their eldest son and his wife. When the COVID restrictions made staying in Minnesota too isolating, his daughter Dorothy and her husband Carlos welcomed Hugh into their home in South Carolina for what proved to be his final few months with us. Their generosity and love in caring for him has been a blessing for all of the family.

A funeral mass is scheduled for 9 a.m. on January 25,2021 at St. Paul Catholic Church, 15 Forest Knoll Dr., Fenton, Missouri, followed by his burial at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, 2900 Sheridan Road, St. Louis, Missouri.

He is survived by his brother, Dan Collett, and his four children, Robert Hugh Collett and his wife Teresa, Donna Collett Denham, Dorothy Collett Vanegas and her husband Carlos, and Thomas Walter Collett and his wife Carolina. Ten grandchildren, Robert (Megan) Collett, Jr., Christina (Kevin) Krautbauer, Laura (Lucas) Forcella, Meghan Denham, Scott (Taryn) Denham, Kelly Denham, Nicole (Colby) Porter, Andres (Rebecca) Vanegas, Daniel Concha Rengifo, and Thomas Collett, and twelve great-grandchildren also survive him. Many beloved nieces and nephews will greatly miss him as well.

Memorial donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association through the tribute page established in his name at https://act.alz.org/site/TR/Events/Tributes-AlzheimersChampions?pxfid=662136&fr_id=1060&pg=fund.