David George Barker

1944 - 2024

Barker, David George

Sunday June 2nd, 2024, around 9am, David George Barker, 80, passed away peacefully beside his beloved wife of 56 years, Carol, at their home in Kerrville, Texas after seeing each of his children one last time.

David was born in Anniston, Alabama on March 19, 1944 to Ford and Agnes Barker a few months before his father was deployed to Europe for D Day. David arrived in Galveston, TX in 1947 and grew up there before moving to LaMarque in 1954. David was in Boy Scouts until eighth grade when athletics drew his attention, specifically baseball, football, and track. In High School he played on several championship football teams and played quarterback on a multi-year state play-off team. He excelled in track, setting records in local, district, and region levels. David excelled in the classroom at every level, winning science fairs and honing skills in math. His talent and hard work earned him admittance to Scheiner College in 1962 with an athletic scholarship in track. Two years later he earned his AA degree in engineering which in turn paved the way for him to transfer to Texas A&M University, an experience that would shape the rest of his life.

At A&M, David attempted to run for the track team before an injury forced him to hang up his cleats officially, though he did play campus intramurals including playing safety in the annual 12th Man Bowl. His undergraduate study in mechanical engineering led the way to an interest in nuclear engineering. He was awarded the Leverett Scholarship for years 1964 to 1966 for academic performance, participated in many professional clubs like ASME, ANS, and SAE, and authored a paper for the college of engineering publication, "Titanium and the Aerospace Age." He earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering in 1966, entered graduate school immediately, and was awarded a graduate assistantship working in the Nuclear Science center performing research. David was able to complete his master's thesis and graduate with a Master of Science in Nuclear Engineering in August 1968. His education continued in his adult life where he completed programs in engineering and executive management from UCLA in 1970, Idaho in 1975, Penn State in 1986, and even UT in 2008.

David's career began after A&M at the Nuclear Division of Todd Shipyards in Galveston working on the Nuclear Ship Savannah Program, the world's first nuclear powered maritime vessel. He joined the HB Zachry Construction company in 1971 as part of their team to build a nuclear-powered central station power plant in Puerto Rico. In 1972 he was recruited by the Houston Lighting & Power Company in its new Nuclear Program. He wrote the specifications for the South Texas Nuclear Project (STNP) in 1972, was named quality assurance manager in 1973, construction manager in 1977, and manager of the entire project in 1978 where he served in that capacity until 1985. After his nuclear work, David had positions that had him leading the company's renovation of a downtown tower for its new headquarters, building a chilled water business as President & Chief Operating Officer of a subsidiary of Reliant and CenterPoint Energy, and leading the winning proposal for the naming rights of Reliant Stadium. After retiring from CenterPoint in 2004, David reunited with a college friend at Dril-Quip in what would become the first of two stints at the company. Between them he worked for the State of Texas from 2006 to 2008 as Deputy Executive Director for Facilities responsible for the management and oversight of all statewide facilities. He returned to Dril-Quip to lead major global projects before retiring in 2017. Retirement saw David engage in consulting and various business ventures.

During David's career he served on several volunteer boards with the United Way, Sheltering Arms, Alley Theatre, Cypress Fairbanks Education Foundation, and elected three terms to the Cypress Fairbanks ISD Board of Trustees as President, Vice-President and Secretary, and served on the Board of Trustees of Schreiner University for several years.

Recognition for David's contributions included receiving a Department of Mechanical Engineering, Academy of Distinguished Graduates award from Texas A&M University in 2001, Athletic Hall of Honor and Distinguished Alumnus awards from Schreiner University in 2014, Department of Nuclear Engineering, Distinguished Former Student Award also in 2014, and an award for 50 years of outstanding service as a Professional Engineer from the State of Texas in 2022.

In David's private life, he was a devoted husband, father and Grandaddy, friend and mentor to many. He enjoyed hunting and fishing for many years, and was a lifelong golfer, playing at courses around the world. David always took the opportunity to visit friends and family members whenever and wherever possible.

David is preceded in death by his parents Agnes and Ford Barker, brother Ford and sister Rosalie Stringer. He is survived by his wife, Carol, their son Kyle and wife Jenny, daughter Kelly Webb and husband Justin, daughter Andrea, grandsons JD and Scott Webb, and his younger brother Tony, plus many nieces, nephews and cousins.

Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 at Forest Park East, 21620 Gulf Fwy, Webster, Texas.