H. Kyle Seale

H. Kyle Seale passed from the loving arms of his family to the Everlasting Arms of Our Lord on Saturday February 26, 2011 at his beloved ranch in Helotes. He was born on January 1, 1924, the only child of Mid and Jewell Seale, in Nacogdoches, Texas. The family moved to San Antonio in 1939 and Kyle graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School where he was a member of the National Honor Society, Hayne Debate Club and ROTC.

After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Kyle went from being a sophomore at the University of Texas at Austin, to a volunteer in the Army. Within a year he graduated with an Officer’s Commission in one hand and Overseas Orders in the other hand. At the age of 20, He made his way across the Pacific on an unescorted troop ship, dodging enemy submarines for 36 days, and seeing the huge fires on the horizon at night of ships that were torpedoed and sinking. He led a rifle platoon in the 41st Infantry Division through front-line combat in the Philippines. He was awarded the Infantry Combat Badge and later the Bronze Star, as well as numerous other Medals, Decorations, and Citations as a result of his leadership and bravery in jungle warfare.

Leaving the Army as Captain in the Fall of 1946, Kyle resumed his studies at UT Austin and graduated with a Doctor of Jurisprudence from the UT School of Law. During his last year of Law School, Kyle had already taken and passed all the State Bar Exams and was a licensed attorney. He took flying lessons as a diversion from studying and earned his Private Pilot’s License.

He returned to San Antonio where he practiced Real Estate and Oil and Gas Law. He began investing in real estate and eventually limited his Law practice to those issues that pertained to his family holdings. He was a member of the San Antonio Bar Ass’n, the Texas State Bar,the American Bar Ass’n and was licensed to practice in all Texas Courts, the 5th and 11th US Circuit Courts of Appeal and the US Supreme Court.

Kyle was a faithful Christian and served as Deacon and in numerous teaching and leadership roles at Trinity Baptist Church. He served on various Boards including, the Salvation Army, the Cancer Therapy and Research Center, and the UTSA Development Board. He supported many other local organizations, particularly, the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research, the Texas Research Park, the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, UTSA, and the McNay Art Museum.

He is survived by his wife, Billie G. Seale; 6 children: Daniel Seale, Kathleen Seale Withers and husband Mark Withers, Carolyn Seale and partner Carol Lee Klose, Stephen Seale and wife Sherri Seale, Victoria Seale, and Marian Seale Freeland; 2 step-daughters: Kristin Daniel and husband Jay Daniel, Kendra Clark and husband Todd Clark; 8 grandchildren: Emily and husband Gordon, Arlen, Rebecca and husband John, Quincy, Atticus, Wesley, Ivy, and Brooks; 4 step-grandchildren: Nathan, Ben, Kassy and Kaelin; and 2 great-grandchildren Montana and Dakota. We will miss his love, wisdom, humor and kindness.

Contributions in his memory may be made to any organization that, as Kyle taught his children, will “Make the world a better place than you found it.”

Visitation will be held Thursday, March 3, 2011 from 6PM to 8PM at Sunset Funeral Home. The funeral service will be at 1PM Friday, March 4, 2011 at Trinity Baptist Church, 319 E. Mulberry, San Antonio, TX 78212. A reception will be at 12PM, prior to the service, at the church in the Grand Room. Interment will follow the service at Sunset Memorial Park.