William Anthony Prather

William Anthony Prather was born in Falkner, Mississippi, on September 15, 1953,
to Willie Ammon Prather and Eula Mae Prather. He was the third of four children,
the elder of two sons.
Anthony, as he was affectionately known, attended Mississippi Valley State
University earning a bachelors degree in Mathematics. He continued his education
at Howard University, obtaining a masters degree in Physics. He also met his wife of
45 years, Carolyn, at Howard. They were married on December 27, 1976. After
college in 1978, he and Carolyn settled in Clear Lake, Houston, TX. There he began
his career with Lockheed-Martin as a hardware engineer for the Shuttle Avionics
Integration Laboratory (SAIL), which was part of the Space Shuttle Program at
NASA, Johnson Space Center. Later, he became manager of the SAIL Hardware
Engineering Department with United Space Alliance (USA). Anthony retired from
USA at the end of the Space Shuttle Program.
Anthony and Carolyn soon welcomed their two beautiful children - daughter,
Shannon Nicole and son, Stephen Anthony.
Through his work and community, he met many life long friends, enjoying a good
game of cards, football and basketball, dancing, and lots of laughter. Anthony was an
avid amateur photographer, taking beautiful photos of nature as well as family. He
also enjoyed music, playing the piano and even a little soulful guitar. He will be
remembered for his commitment to his family, his lovable goofiness and his hearty
laugh. You definitely knew when Anthony was tickled by something funny. His
infectious laughter made everyone else laugh.
Anthony mentored and encouraged many who came along after him, including
siblings, cousins, in laws, and friends of friends. He was generous in sharing his
wisdom and knowledge with those coming up behind him.
The Lord called Anthony home on Friday, October 21, 2022. He is survived by his
wife Carolyn, daughter Shannon, son Stephen, brother Calvin, grandson Dominic,
and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends. He was preceded in death by his
parents, Willie Ammon and Eula Mae Prather, and sisters Ann Prather Parham and
Clara Prather Clark.
The funeral service will be held on Friday, November 4, 2022 at 11:00 am at Carnes
Funeral Home, 3100 Gulf Freeway, Texas City, TX 77591 with interment at Hayes
Grace Memorial Park Cemetery, 10708 Highway 6, Hitchcock, TX 77563. The
visitation will be held from 9:00 am to the time of the service.