Edgar Eugene "Beck" Becknell

Edgar Eugene Beck Becknell LUBBOCK-Edgar Eugene Beck Becknell passed from this life Wednesday, April 30, 2014. Eugene was born on April 9, 1928, to Edgar and Nell Becknell in Quanah, Texas. Eugene married Wanda Sawyers at St. John's United Methodist Church in Lubbock, Texas, on October 8, 1949. He graduated from Idalou High School and attended Texas Tech. He was a proud cotton farmer and prided himself in planting his cotton on his birthday. Along with farming, he co-owned the Idalou Pump Company, partnered in the Farmers Gin in Idalou, and spent a large part of each cotton season working on the farm in the daytime and pulling the night shift as the gin manager. In 1969, he stepped in to manage the family business, Becknell Wholesale Company, after his dad was seriously injured in a car accident. Under his leadership, the business expanded from Lubbock to a second location in Dallas. He always hired young college students, many of whom went on to very successful careers. Eugene served as president of the Texas Wholesale Hardware Association and was honored with a lifetime membership. He also served as Chairman of the Broadmoor Conference of Hardware Group Association, president of the Hardware Group Association, and the Southern & Eastern Hardware Association. Eugene served as president of the Lubbock Club and as a board member of the Llano Estacado Winery. He served on the Board of Directors of State National Bank, Wells Fargo Bank, Norwest Bank, First National Bank, Bank of the West and Idalou State Bank. He also served as president of the Idalou School Board. He was a proud supporter of the Red Raider Club and the Texas Tech University Chancellor's Council. Eugene was a long-time member of the Lubbock Executive Association, receiving the Business Man of the Year award. He served as an Advisory Board member to the Lubbock Women's Club. He was a member of the Idalou United Methodist Church. He was also honored with the Arrowman award from the Pi Beta Phi sorority. As a father and grandfather, he held the unofficial record for attending dance recitals for 35 consecutive years. Survivors include his wife, Wanda Becknell; their daughters, Brenda Becknell, Donna Chandler and husband, Ron, and Robin Walker and husband, Don; grandchildren, Emily Chandler and Ashli Poindexter, Matthew Chandler and wife, Tiffany, Ivy Zepeda and husband, Kris, and Hannah Walker; great-grandchildren, Kamryn and Devon Chandler; sister, Kay Jones; brother-in-law, Buddy Sawyers and wife, Judy; sister-in-law, Pat Stitt and husband Chuck. The family would like to express gratitude to Dr. Harold Smith, Dr. Larry Warmoth, Dr. Mounir Borno, Dr. Michael Robertson, Dr. David Vermillion, Dr. Marque Hunter, Dr. Naidu Chekuru, Dr. Eric Pagenkopf, and the entire staff at Covenant Health Systems. Memorials may be made to The South Plains Food Bank, Covenant Foundation, South Plains Kidney Foundation, or a charity of your choice. The visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday, May 4, 2014, at Lake Ridge Chapel and Memorial Designers located at 82nd and Iola. The memorial service to celebrate his life of 86 years will be on Monday, May 5, 2014, at 2 p.m. at St. John's United Methodist Church located at 15th and University. A tribute to Eugene's life may be found at www.memorialdesigners.net, where you may leave memories and expressions of sympathy for his family.