Dixie “Coach” Pinell, 83, passed away peacefully on May 29th, 2016, in Houston Texas after a courageous battle with brain cancer. He was born in 1932 to Eugene and Annie Pinell in Port Arthur, Texas. Dixie was preceded in death by Ellen Pinell, his wife of over 51 years; brother, Eugene Pinell Jr.; and sister Gloria Smith. He is survived by his sister Mary Hellen Hardy and brother Darnell Pinell; Ruth Oren, his wife of seven years; her sons Eyal, Yaniv and Yoni Insall and their wives and children - Vivianna , Isabella, Dana , Sharon, Arielle, Yuval and Itay Insall; daughter Dr. Cindy Joffrion and her husband Cliff Joffrion; son Paul Pinell; granddaughter Alex Pinell and her mother Christine Pinell.
After graduating from Port Arthur High school in 1950 Dixie joined the United States Airforce and proudly service his country for six years. In 1960 Dixie started a new career as newspaper pressman for the Port Arthur News. During his time off he was a volunteer little league football and basketball coach and a part-time student at Lamar University.
In 1967 Dixie moved his family to Houston so that he could pursue his dream of becoming a high school athletic coach. Shortly after arriving in Houston he began to work for the Houston Chronicle while attending the University of Houston. Dixie graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education in 1979 and followed in 1988 with a Masters of Education from Texas Southern University, and a Master’s in Business. He was the first in his family to obtain a university degree, which was a great source of pride for his family. In 1988 he joined the staff at Austin High School until he retired in 2010. Dixie taught multiple subjects and coached football, swimming, baseball and soccer while leading his students to several division titles. Even after retirement he was still visited by his former students who always referred to him as Coach.
During his retirement Dixie enjoyed world travel and visited over 12 different counties. He enjoyed visiting Paris and retraced the steps that his father had taken during World War I. He also visited Israel 16 times.
In lieu of flowers please send donations to Houston Soccer Organization by clicking the link below;
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