William Gilbert

GILBERT, William C. William C Gilbert, age 82, passed away September 6, 2018 at his home in Austin, surrounded by his loving family. He was born in Denver, Colorado in 1935 to John and Freda Gilbert. During World War ll the family relocated to California and Florida while his father served as an engineering officer in the navy. After the war, the family settled in Denver where Bill finished from South High in 1953. He then attended the University of Colorado and graduated with honors in Chemical Engineering in 1957. He served as an officer in the United States Navy in Japan from 1957-1959. After his service, he joined ExxonMobil in Baton Rouge, LA, where Bill met Evelyn Campbell of Ville Platte, LA, a graduate student at LSU, who became his wife of 57 years. Bill retired in 1992 after a 35-year career with ExxonMobil in engineering and managerial positions in both Refining and Marketing. Most of these assignments were in Houston and Baytown, Texas, where he eventually settled to raise a family. After retirement, he worked for Tal Smith Enterprises on the baseball salary arbitration team, representing numerous MLB teams, while also writing articles on baseball for various publications. Left to honor Bill are his wife and their four children: John, Paul, Susan and Patrick and 9 grandchildren (Allie, Caleb, Evan, Grace, Zoe, Leah, Kara, Will, and Casey). Before all else, Bill was a devoted husband and father. His lifelong passion was baseball. He was instrumental in the formation of the Society of American Baseball Researchers (SABR) chapters in Austin and Houston, where he made many lifelong friends. Bill felt a strong obligation to give back to the community in the many service and church volunteer organizations in which he was involved. He was a member of Emmaus Catholic Church in Lakeway, Texas, where he was a lector and choir member for many years. Bill also served in numerous capacities for many other organizations, including: President of the United Way of Baytown, a member of the Baytown Municipal Development Board and the Baytown Parks and Recreation Board, a Paul Harris Fellow in Rotary International, Little League Baseball as a coach and League Director for 15 years, Big Brothers Big Sisters Advisory Council, President of the Baytown Area Senior Softball Assoc., Tutor for Partners in Education and the GAP Program After School, Project Coordinator for the Executive Service Corps of Houston, YMCA Basketball coach, and Loaned Executive for the United Way of Texas Gulf Coast. Bill will be dearly missed by all who had the good fortune to know him. To quote an old SABR baseball friend, "Bill's passing leaves a hole in the lineup that will never be filled." The funeral Mass will be held at Emmaus Catholic Church in Lakeway, Texas on September 21, 2018 at 12:00 PM, followed by a reception in the church Great Hall. A Memorial Service will be held at 4:15 PM at Longhorn Village in Steiner Ranch, Austin where Bill and Evelyn reside. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the American Heart Association. Remembrances may be left at www.wcfish.com.