Joe W. Bratcher Jr.

I WILL MISS JOE BRATCHER AND THE WAY HE CARED FOR
FRIENDS, FAMILY, AND THE COMMUNITY.

In days of yore, c. 1950, I first met Joe at TCU, and Rhobie not long afterward. An obvious common bond was music, I as listener, they as masterful keyboard artists.

We shared various others interests, though; e.g., literature, humorists / cartoonists [think James Thurber and Walt Kelly], gourmet food, including Rhobie's very own exquisite babas au rhum. Always great conversation and frequently miniature golf!

When their daughter Wendy was born, they awarded me the distinct honor of being her Godfather.

Idyllic scenes are impermanent, and when 1960 arrived, they moved to Austin and I to Seattle to work at Boeing for the next thirty-five years. Fortunately for me, Joe and Rhobie made occasional trips to Seattle for stockholders' meetings and it was déjà vu all over again.

One year, we three journeyed north to attend the annual Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. Viewing endless rainbow-hued fields whets the appetite, and we ended our tour feasting on the unique cuisine offered in the nearby village of La Conner.

In off years, we remained in touch via letters and long-distance calls, sometimes lasting for hours. Family photos revealed that the red of Rhobie's hair found its match in that of their daughter Brigit and her daughter Annie Tate.

After their son Joe founded Host Publications, they made sure that I received many admirable anthologies and films as they appeared.

It would take a tome much larger than this Guest Book to tell of all the happy hours I've passed with Joe, who never saw an oyster he didn't enjoy; never opened a score by Ferruccio Busoni, Alexander Scriabin, or Kaikhosru Sorabji he didn't master; and never failed to dazzle us all with his brilliant wit.

In 2004, Joe and I drove to Whidbey Island, famous for its wineries and restaurants, where my wife Angela took the attached photo, more than half a century from the time I first met Joe.

RIP Mr. Bratcher, Family so sorry for your Loss,

Brigid and family so very sorry for your loss