Arthur Jack Lewis

1920 - 2015

Arthur Jack Lewis, 95, died Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2015, at home at Dancing River in Grapevine, surrounded by the love of family and friends. Memorial service: will be held at noon, Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Elks Lodge, 909 Bushong, Grapevine. Memorials: In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Grapevine Elks Lodge, P.O. Box 1923, Grapevine, Texas 76099 or Envoy Hospice Foundation, 1412 West Magnolia, Suite 100, Fort Worth, Texas 76104. Jack was born on Aug. 20, 1920, in Roslyn, Wash., to Charles Lewis and Myrtle Thompson Lewis and later raised by his mother and her husband, Frank Campbell. He was predeceased by his parents and wife, Margaret Bogle Lewis. He is survived by sisters, Peggy Adkinson and Dawn Newell, both of Bellingham, Wash.; daughters, Judy Lewis and husband, Stuart Sakovich, of West Hartford, Conn., and Jackie Duncan and husband, Bill, of Ankeny, Iowa; two granddaughters, Sara Ross and Stephanie Duncan; and five great-grandchildren, all of Ankeny. Jack grew up in Bellingham, Wash., where he made early morning deliveries of his mother's fresh baked rolls, was in the Sea Scouts, played semi-pro baseball, worked in the Civilian Conservation Corps and the coal mines (long enough to know he didn't want to follow in the work of his fathers and grandfathers). In 1939 he enlisted in the Army and was honorably discharged in 1945. He was stationed in Fort Des Moines, where he met Thelma Halterman. They were married in San Francisco 1942. Thelma was the mother of his daughters. He was stationed in the Pacific during World War II in Hawaii and for several years on Canton Island. After the war, he lived in Bellingham and then moved with Thelma to Des Moines where he lived until 1964, working as a bus driver and a postal clerk and then finding his true avocation--labor unions and advocacy. He was the president of the Postal Clerks Union in Des Moines during contentious times and became secretary-treasurer of the Iowa AFL-CIO. He helped create a new voter redistricting plan for the state to provide more equitable representation. He also met Presidents Kennedy and Johnson. In the late 1960s he began working for the federal labor department on contract disputes and arbitration, first in St. Louis, Maryland and finally Dallas. In 1965 Jack married Margaret Bogle and lived with her in Bedford until her death in 2008. He was an active member of the Mid-Cities Elks Lodge and then the Grapevine Elks Lodge, he served as exalted ruler five times. After his retirement, Jack continued to lead an active life at the Elks, playing golf at Glen Garden, and enjoying friends and family. For the past five years, he lived at Dancing River in Grapevine. He was one of the first three residents along with his dear friend and table companion, Bob Burrus. He made many friends and entertained everyone with his stories. He will be greatly missed by staff and residents. He was thrilled to be able to go on the DFW Honor Flight in May of 2014 and be recognized for his service in World War II. The family would like to thank Envoy Hospice for their loving care for the past three years, keeping him healthy and enjoying his life.