Joseph Edward Kubes Sr.

1923 - 2005

Joseph Edward Kubes Sr., 82, a beloved husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, founder of Kubes Jewelers, brother and humanitarian, died Friday, May 27, 2005, following a short illness.

Memorial Mass of Christian Burial: 2 p.m. Wednesday at St. Andrew Catholic Church, the Rev. Warren L. Murphy, T.O.R, celebrant.

Memorials: In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to local food banks.

Joe, from a strong Czech heritage, was born March 18, 1923, in New Prague, Minn. He was raised on a farm in Northfield, Minn., during the Great Depression, the third oldest of 11 children. This is where his tremendous work ethic, physical, mental strength and common sense were formed. Joe was a mentor and role model to his many brothers and sisters who respected his generosity, work ethic, dependability and love of family.

He enlisted at the start of World War II with his brothers. He and Ray enlisted in the Marine Corps and Stan in the Air Force. At 18 Joe showed keen mechanical ability and trained at Navy Pier in Chicago before shipping overseas to the Pacific. One of his greatest thrills was being in the color guard of a parade down Michigan Avenue. Joe worked on the instrument panels of the fighter planes and did watch repairs for the servicemen, sending all his money home to support his parents, who were struggling on the farm.

While in St. Paul, Minn., on leave at the end of the war, he met Rita ("the only woman I ever had eyes for"). Two months later, he was sent to Fort Worth, where he was to be honorably discharged. That is when "Lady Rita" pulled the first of her lifelong surprises on poor unsuspecting Joe and eloped on "a sentimental journey" (a famous World War II song of the time and their love song) by train. She was only 18 at the time and he was 22, but their "love at first sight" lasted 59 and a half years.

With $35 to his name, and no friends or family within a thousand miles, they embarked on their grand adventure, with fierce determination and an appreciation for the unlimited and bright horizons Fort Worth had to offer.

Joe had a chance to go work at American Airlines, but Rita convinced him they should start Kubes Jewelers watch repair across from Texas Wesleyan College in the Poly area in 1945. Under the GI Bill, he took advanced training to become Fort Worth's first certified gemologist.

Sixty years later, as an example of their never-ending drive, determination, integrity, love and Christian focus they have six children (out of eight) and 10 grandchildren (out of 21) carrying on these guidelines in their family store. Joe was the proverbial "man who never met a stranger," and like Will Rogers, "never met a man he didn't like."

He always quickly found a commonality with a person and tried to lift that person's life emotionally and spiritually. He insisted on his family calling anyone they interacted with by their name, as a constant reminder of the respect to which a person was entitled.

When Joe and Rita retired, he found his "Heaven-on-Earth" in Ruidoso, N.M. Not a day went by that he would not say, "Praise the Lord" and "We are truly blessed!" The coincidence of his passing away on Memorial Day weekend will not be lost on those who knew him.

He was the best that an American could hope to be: modest, humble, always subservient to the greater good, respectful of all religions, colors, creeds and genders and willing to defend his country and family to protect those rights.

His goal in life was to love and provide for his wife and children and to imbue in them responsibility toward God and mankind. He took on this yoke of responsibility as a labor of love until God saw that Joe's understanding of His will was firmly implanted in all four generations of the Kubes family. Then the Lord said to Joe, "I'm calling you home now, your work is done and done magnificently!"

We will always remember what our husband, father and grandfather would say -- "Everything through love."

He was preceded in death by his father, Charles; mother, Rose; brothers, Stan and Ray; and sisters, Millie and Cecilia.

Survivors: Ever-loving wife, Rita; children, Joe Kubes Jr. and his wife, Yvonne, Rick Kubes and his wife, Mary, Mary Kubes Kindred and her husband, Mike, Julia Kubes Pelham and her husband, Richard, Rosanne Kubes, Tony Kubes and his wife, Sue, Kathy Kubes and Teresa Trowbridge and her husband, Gary; grandchildren, Paul and his wife, Lindsey, Joe Don and his wife, Kass, Christina and her husband, Mark, Steve and his wife, Faye, Greg, Daniel, Kenneth, Brent and his wife, Miranda, Jeff and his wife, Curran, Lydia, Brian, Andrea and her husband, Dusty, Christopher and his wife, Lindsey, Brigette and her husband, Jeff, Amy, Rachel and her fiance, Kenneth, Casey, Justin, Katie, Nicole and Sarah; great-grandchildren, Brittany, Kaitlin, Lauren, Rylie, Haley, Stephanie, Whitney, Emily, Connor and Tye; brothers, Ed, Chuck and his wife, Rosemarie, Dick and his wife, Sophie and Ron and his wife, Kay; sister, Mary Jane; and numerous cousins; nephews; and nieces.