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Delbert Arlyn Taebel Our Dad, Delbert Arlyn Taebel, died on Friday, Aug. 31, 2012 at 78 years old. To quote one of his colleagues, his death leaves a big gap in the community of honorable people. As the youngest of twin boys and an older brother, Del was born on June 2, 1934 to Louise and Winfield Taebel in Lombard, Illinois. After graduating from Ripon College, he served as a reporter for the Appleton Post-Crescent, where he covered local politics and the final years of Senator Joseph McCarthy. It was there that he met his soon-to-be-wife, Kay Swan, when she tried to get him to move faster down a stairwell in her haste to get somewhere. In 1957, he went on active duty as an Army officer in the Adjutant General Corps and served in military bases all over the world, ending up at the 2d Armored Division in Fort Hood, Texas, where he served as the Adjutant General. Receiving numerous awards and commendations, he was discharged in 1968, but remained in the Army reserves and retired in 1976. As a Ph D. student at the University of Texas, he was asked by then Texas Senator Barbara Jordan to serve as the chief research director of the Senate's Urban Affairs Committee. After graduation, he was invited to join the faculty at the Institute of Urban Studies at the University of Texas at Arlington where he held numerous positions, including Graduate Advisor of the Masters of Urban Affairs and later as Advisor to the Ph. D. in Urban and Public Administration. In 1996, he was asked to serve as the Associate Dean of the School. Before his full retirement in 2008, he was extensively involved in a wide variety of public affairs. He served extensively in the Democratic Party, and was named a delegate to the 1974 convention in Kansas City and served on the Credentials Committee at the 1976 Democratic National Convention. He also testified in numerous federal and state court cases on elections, ballots, and the selection of grand jury members. He wrote more than a dozen books and monographs, several with faculty from his own school as well as others, and he has published more than 50 articles in recognized journals. Our dad is predeceased by his parents Louise and Winfield and his brother Duane. He leaves behind his wife of 56 years, Kay; daughter and son-in-law Holly and John Eaton and their son Will, of Austin, and daughter and son-in-law Carrie and Jack Jones, and their daughters Kendall and Emma, of Dripping Springs. Dad showed us the meaning of living life to the fullest. He traveled extensively around the world, and even after retirement, he looked for new experiences, taking informal classes at UT, watercolor painting, yoga, and was always reading a new book. As the famous Erma Bombeck once said, "When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me'." Believe us, our Dad certainly did. Memorial contributions may be made to the Austin Children's Shelter. For a full-length online tribute, please see www.wcfish.com. For Memorial Service information, please contact Weed-Corley-Fish, Lamar location.
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Published in Austin American-Statesman on Sept. 30, 2012
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