Joe Winford Pyle

Joe Winford Pyle of Nacogdoches, TX, died Friday, December 20, 2024. Joe was born on October 21, 1937 in Crockett, TX, the 2nd of 2 sons to Harvey Jefferson Pyle and Vera Belle Stowe Pyle. They were all natives of Houston County, TX. After two years of public school in Crockett, the family relocated to Houston, TX. Joe grew up in Houston and graduated with honors from Jefferson Davis High School in 1956, He immediately entered the University of Houston.

While at the University of Houston from 1956 to 1961, Joe was President of Delta Chi, he was Delta Zeta Duke in 1959, and was active in Frontier Fiesta. Joe was also active in the Interfraternity Council (IFC), and was selected to be a member of several honorary societies including Sigma Xi and Phi Kappa Phi. He was active in the student chapters of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE) and the Institute of Radio Engineers (IRE). Joe received a BS with a major in mathematics and a BS in Electrical Engineering.

He married Juanita Ann Barnes in 1960 and they moved to Seattle, Washington upon graduation in 1961, where Jeffrey was born. Joe worked on the Minuteman ICBM project. He was at Minuteman Wing I, Malmstrom AFB, MT, during the tense Cuban Missile crisis. While in Seattle he attended the University of Washington, pursuing a MSEE, but before finishing he was transferred to New Orleans, LA.

After Boeing transferred Joe to New Orleans, where Jonathan was born, he worked on the SIC stage of the Saturn V Moon Rocket around Christmas of 1963, and while there, he finished his Master of Science in Electrical Engineering (MSEE) degree at LSU in January 1967.

The family moved back to Houston, TX in August, 1966, where Jennifer was born. Joe went to work for Ford Aerospace on August 22, 1966 assisting in the development of the Mission Control Center for the Johnson Space Center. Throughout his aerospace career, his employers were Philco-Ford, Ford Aerospace, Loral, and Lockheed Martin.

During this time, Joe began pursuing his PhD in Electrical Engineering at UH, where he was a Teaching Assistant until he finished in 1973, while Juanita was teaching full time. The family spent the summer of 1971 in Ann Arbor, MI at the University of Michigan with the Institute of Public Policy Studies while Joe researched the dynamics of sociographic components that may impact computer representation of urban dynamics.

Always interested in genealogy, Joe held several positions of leadership in the Nacogdoches Genealogical Society, including President. He was a member of the Angelina County and Cherokee County Genealogical Societies and served as Secretary/Treasurer. Joe was also a member of The Sons of the Republic of Texas, Adolphus Sterne Chapter #19 and was Chapter President as well serving as District Representative for the Piney Woods District for a number of years.

Joe fulfilled his military obligation by serving 8 years in the reserve military components. He served 3 years in the Texas National Guard, 49th Armored Division, 157th Medium Tank Battalion, and also in the Texas Air National Guard, 272nd GEEIA Squadron, LaPorte, TX.

Joe was preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Leonard Harvey Pyle, as well as his wife, Juanita Ann Barnes Pyle.

He is survived by his children: Jeffrey A. Pyle, JD and wife Linda Wills, JD, of Houston, TX, Jonathan D. Pyle, MBA, and wife, Viviana S. Pyle, MBA, of El Dorado Hills, CA, and Jennifer Pyle McCormack, MEd, and husband Max M. McCormack Jr, BS, of Nacogdoches, TX.

Visitation will be held at the Cason Monk Funeral Home in Nacogdoches, TX on January 3, 2024 from 5:00-7:00 p.m. The Funeral Service will be held at First United Methodist Church, 201 East Hospital Street in Nacogdoches, TX on January 4, 2024 at 10:00 a.m., with food and fellowship to follow in the Parlor. Interment will be at 2:00 p.m. at San Pedro Cemetery, near Grapeland, TX, 10 miles north of Crockett, TX on FM2022.