Harold McMillan Bixby Caldwell

Louisville, Ky. Harold McMillan Bixby (Mac) Caldwell died on Sunday, Nov. 11, 2007, at Baptist East Hospital in Louisville, Ky. He was playing tennis, a game he loved, when he was stricken. Mac was born on Dec. 26, 1942, in Louisville, Ky., the eldest son of the late Samuel Smith Caldwell and Frances Bixby Caldwell. He attended Anchorage Public School through the ninth grade, and graduated from Eastern High School where he excelled in basketball and baseball. He was a member of the Kentucky Basketball High School All Stars and helped his state beat the Indiana All Stars at the Butler Field House in Indianapolis. He entered the University of Virginia with a full athletic scholarship and received All-Conference honors as a high-scoring forward. Upon graduation in 1965, he served as a Naval Officer aboard the U.S.S. Oklahoma City in the Gulf of Tonkin off the coast of Vietnam. After completing his military service he moved to Atlanta, Ga., and earned a master's degree in business administration from Emory University. In Atlanta he met Cecil Birnie Lewis from Greenville, S. C. They were married in May of 1973, and moved to the Atlanta suburb of Buckhead. Their children, Bix, Clare and Julia were all born in Atlanta. In 1980, Mac and Cecil moved to Mac's hometown of Anchorage, Ky. Mac was a self-employed remodeling contractor for most of his working career. He served as a volunteer firefighter for the Anchorage Fire Department, and, at the time of his death, he served on the Anchorage Historical Society. He served many civic organizations. He was a member of the Louisville Country Club where his tennis skills earned him many honors. Mac was well known for his droll sense of humor. Everyone who knew him has a story. His children, nieces, and nephews all expected Mac to label them with some wonderful nickname or give them an absurd Christmas present. He was respected and admired for his great, good sense. He is survived by his wife, Cecil Birnie Lewis Caldwell; a son, Harold McMillan Bixby (Bix) Caldwell and his wife, Rebecca, and their two children, Lillian and Miller; a daughter, Clare Lewis Caldwell and her husband, Joshua Pincus; and a daughter, Julia Cushing Caldwell. He is also survived by his mother, Frances Bixby Caldwell; his three brothers: Samuel Smith Caldwell and his wife, Rayna, and their daughter, Abigail, Edgar Morsman Caldwell and his wife, Jane, and their children, Ruben and Samuel, Henry Adams Caldwell and his wife, Katrina Van Dyck, and their children, Harold and Charlotte and many nieces, nephews and cousins. His father, Samuel Smith Caldwell, died on Oct. 14, 1984. Mac loved to vacation at the family home on Lake George, N.Y. where his large, extended family cherished his sense of humor, his skills in tennis, water skiing, swimming, and boating, his wisdom and leadership in dealing with the complexities of family corporations, and his natural ability as a storyteller. He was a man of large, physical stature. Mac was an active member of his community, including the Anchorage Historical Preservation Commission, but loved nothing so much as an evening at home watching one of his favorite ball teams. He was, above all else, a beloved family man. A funeral service will be held at the Anchorage Presbyterian Church in Anchorage, Ky., on Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2007, at 11 a.m. Visitation will be at the Pearson's Funeral Home on Shelbyville Road in Middletown, Tuesday evening from 4 to 7 p.m. Memorial gifts may be made in Mac's name to the Kentucky Heart Association or Habitat for Humanity.