Jim D. Wilson

1944 - 2024

Jimmy Doyle "Jim" Wilson, of Austin, TX, passed away on January 11, 2024, at the age of 79, after a brief illness. Jim was born on September 23, 1944, in Waco, TX to Charles Leroy and Etta Mae Lindsey Wilson. Jim's father served in the U.S. Army Air Corps and the U. S. Air Force during and after World War II and the family, consisting at that time of his parents, older brother Charles Jr. and Jim, moved frequently. Jim's sister, Linda, was born in Midwest City, OK. They eventually settled in McGregor, TX, where Jim's youngest brother, Gary, was born. Jim was a determined student and a natural athlete, but it was his fascination with the U. S. space program that framed his life. He obtained his degree in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Texas (UT) at Austin in 1967 and felt fortunate to spend his entire career working with advanced technology.

Jim married Johnnie Ruth Ellis, also of McGregor, in January 1965. Their daughter Shawn Cherie was born in November 1965 and younger daughter Dawn Denise was born in November 1968. After graduating from UT, Jim went to work for Tracor (the first company in Austin, TX to be listed on the NYSE). He spent the largest portion of his career at Tracor (eventually acquired by BAE Systems), with brief stints at Space Data Corporation in Tempe, AZ, The Aerospace Corporation in El Segundo, CA and the Center for Space Research at the University of Texas, where he focused on the Texas Space Grant Consortium (SGC), a part of NASA's SGC. Over the course of his career, Jim was an engineer, program manager, program director and director of marketing. His expertise in the writing of proposals was acknowledged by all who worked with him. He was also renowned for using every available second to perfect those documents, which caused some stress amongst his teammates! Memorable events in his career included time spent in the Kwajalein Atoll in support of rocket launches (while at Tracor), leadership of Tracor's largest (at the time) winning proposal, and a ride in NASA's reduced-gravity aircraft, aka the "Vomit Comet", (Jim did NOT succumb!), while at the Center for Space Research.

Jim and his second wife, Ronda Foster, built their home in west Austin in 1992. Both worked for Tracor / BAE Systems and both were workaholics. They finally found time to marry in January 1998, in their living room, with his daughters, parents and a small schnauzer named Rocky attending. After leaving BAE Systems, they spent several years working with small businesses on a wide range of technologies. Jim was finally persuaded to retire in 2020. Jim and Ronda had 34 wonderful years together. They happily worked together, traveled widely, attended many years of Longhorn football games and, most of all, spent time with their family.

Jim was generally a quiet man, listening far more than he spoke. While his favorite hobby was probably work, he had others, including photography (camera as appendage!), hiking and skiing (at which he excelled). He inherited his passion for and skill at photography from his father and has left us with many beautiful photos of sunsets, eagles, mountains and other travel destinations, family and various flora and fauna. His preferred approach to skiing was to start when the lift opened, take the last lift up and skip lunch. He liked the black diamond slopes. For Ronda, he started at 10 a.m., skied the blue slopes and ate lunch.

Jim was unfailingly devoted to and supportive of family. We will all miss him dearly. Jim is survived by his wife Ronda; daughters Cherie Wilson-Vidal and Denise Wilson (Peyton); grandchildren SimoneRénee, Dominique, Miykael, Gabriella, Mateo, Nicolai, Eva and Jory; sister Linda Wilson (nephew Brendan); brother Gary Wilson (nephew Austin and nieces Holly and Angela); nephew Jonathan Scott Wilson; and niece Tiffiny Wilson Stuart. In addition, he will be sincerely missed by cousins Ron Lindsey (Jan) and Kay Probasco (Bill). He will also be truly missed by a tiny dog named Chrissy, trained by Jim to do amazing tricks. Jim was predeceased by his parents Charles and Etta, his brother Charles Jr. (Joyce) and Charles Jr.'s son Darrell.

A celebration of Jim's life will be held at the Beck Funeral Home (1700 E. Whitestone Blvd., Cedar Park, TX,78613) on Monday, January 22, 2024, with visitation at 1 p.m. and a service at 2 p.m. The service will be livestreamed, with a link available on Jim's obituary page on Beck Funeral Home's website. Donations to the American Lung Association or the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation will be sincerely appreciated. The family wishes to thank the staff at St. David's North Austin Medical Center for their dedicated and compassionate care. Jim, your life was a blessing, your memory is a treasure, you are loved beyond words and are missed beyond measure. Rest in peace.