Theodore Jabour

Theodore Jabour and his identical twin, Arthur, roamed the streets, parks and creeks of a much smaller Austin as boys. They fired anti-aircraft guns side by side in the Pacific theater in World War II, stood together in front of an Eastern Orthodox priest as they married cousins in the early 1950s, and spent almost four decades together running an East Sixth Street package and drugstore that was an inspiration for the Twin Liquors Fine Wine & Spirits chain. Theodore Jabour, described by his son as "a beautiful man," died Monday. He was 88. "Anybody who came across him would immediately be captivated by his gentle face and kind voice and sparkling eyes," David Jabour said Wednesday of his father. It was that ease and joy in being with people, David Jabour said, that explained how the Jabour twins were able to successfully compete on an East Sixth Street business strip that at one time had 26 liquor stores. And the same qualities immediately drew Theodore Jabour out of a brief retirement — the brothers had closed Jabour's Package Store in 1981 — when, in February 1982, sons Ralph and David and daughter Margaret opened a liquor store at Seventh and Red River streets and named it Twin Liquors in honor of their dad. That store, still open, was the seed for what is now a 59-store business from San Antonio to Temple, the largest wine and spirits chain in Central Texas. Theodore Jabour told his son David that the retail business "comes down to service and people. Dad would painstakingly spend endless amounts of time with each and every customer." The Jabours were among a number of Lebanese families that settled in Austin in the late 1800s and early 1900s, many of them opening small businesses downtown. Theodore Jabour's parents ran a mercantile store in the early decades of the 20th century, then expanded the offerings to include liquor after Prohibition ended in 1933. The brothers took over the business after leaving the Army — both were sergeants, David Jabour said — in the wake of World War II. They traveled in 1953 with their mother to Lebanon, where both met girls who just three weeks later became their wives. Helen Jabour survives her husband. "Dad saw her coming down a staircase, and it was love at first sight," David Jabour said. Arthur Jabour died in 2004. Theodore Jabour's eldest son, Ralph, died in 1990. David Jabour said his father, despite a weakening heart and kidney disease in recent years, continued to be active in the business until about nine months ago. Even in his last days, Jabour wanted to know about the recent opening of a new store. "His mind was brilliant until the final hours," David Jabour said. Aside from his wife, son and daughter, Jabour is survived by five grandchildren, a fourth generation who, their parents say, have shown interest in the family business. Theodore Jabour's Eastern Orthodox faith was central to his life, his son said, and he spent countless Sundays as the official greeter at St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Church on East 11th Street. Visitation will be 5 p.m. Friday, followed by a 6 p.m. service at the church. The funeral service will be 10 a.m. Saturday at the church.