William Thomas (Bill) Hall

Bill Hall, "a lawyer's lawyer," a man of style and charm, a man of luminous intelligence, died August 31, 2014, at Christopher House from complications of dementia, a disease which took its inexorable toll, robbing him of his faculties and his family of his presence. A powerful stroke in 1999 that initiated his brain damage finally struck its final blow to Bill and to his family in the form of this formidable, heartless disease.

Bill graduated from Sam Houston State College in Huntsville where he studied Romance languages and was a member of Sigma Chi. In 1967 he graduated from UT School of Law, and he continued to practice law until the residuals of his stroke forced his retirement .

Born to Alton and Kathryn Hall in 1936 in Pt. Arthur, he spent most of his early life in Houston. He was predeceased by his parents and his younger brother John Dennis Hall. His beloved survivors include his wife of 53 years, Pat Hall, and their three children: Kate Hall Mai and husband Mark, Martha Hall Clay and her husband Greg, and Peter Hall and his wife Molly, and a sister, Sara Kathryn Hall, several nieces and nephews, and his loving sister-in-law and her husband, Nancy and Clinton Craven. Eight grandchildren whom he loved well continue the family traditions and values.

A man of many talents, gifted linguistically and "with a lawyer's mind", as one of his friends described him, Bill was a stern grammarian who spoke impeccable Spanish. As a young graduate of Sam Houston, he taught English in Puebla for what was one of his most gratifying life experiences.

He loved his family, people who walk to different drummers, Somerset Maugham, old friends, the Episcopal Church, the camaraderie of his hunting friends, his mother-in-law Harriett Dillon, all foreign languages, sailing, foreign films, the Black Hills, all his wife's friends, travel, Western art, New Mexico, Big Bend.

The family is grateful for our many friends who walked with us through this "Long Goodbye." Additionally, we acknowledge the staff of Colonial Gardens, Bill's home during his last 8 months, who tended him with loving care and helped him and our family adjust to the changes he was experiencing and we were observing.

Should you choose to make a charitable contribution, we suggest the Episcopal Relief and Development Fund, Christopher House, or Hospice Austin. A memorial service will take place on October 4 at 10 a.m.at Holy Spirit Episcopal Church and School, Dripping Springs, Texas.