Memorials › James Michael “Mike” Walker
James Michael “Mike” Walker
22 May 1943 – 26 Dec 2018
| Birth | 22 May 1943 |
| Death | 26 Dec 2018 |
| Cemetery | Huntington Cemetery Huntington , Angelina County , Texas , USA |
| Added by | Cheryl Cartwright on 28 Dec 2018 |
| FaG | https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/195606976 |
Bio
Services for James Michael “Mike” Walker, 75, of Houston, will be in the Carroway Funeral Home Chapel in Lufkin. Interment will follow in the Huntington Cemetery. Mr. Walker was born in a two-room log home in the Ora Community of Angelina County, Texas to the late Lorene Love (Jordan) and Loyd Edward Walker. He died in a Houston hospital. He was preceded in death by his parents. Mr. Walker graduated as valedictorian of the Huntington High School Class of 1961. While attending school in Huntington, he played on two state championship basketball teams. He attended Kilgore College on a basketball scholarship but eventually quit sports to focus on engineering. He moved to Stephen F. Austin State University and later Texas A&M University, where he graduated number one in his class with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering. Mr. Walker then attended the University of Texas in Austin on a National Science Foundation fellowship, graduating with a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering. He returned to Texas A&M University and obtained a PhD in 1972. He took a leave of absence to work on his doctorate in mechanical engineering and taught math at Texas A&M for three years. Mr. Walker worked at Exxon as a subsea engineer then went on to work for McEvoy and Vetco Offshore. After some time, Mr. Walker would become the co-founder of Dril-Quip, a manufacturer of offshore drilling and production equipment. The company went public in 1997 and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DRQ. He retired from his position of Chairman, President and CEO in 2011 after losing both of his partners and good friends to a heart attack and cancer. Mr. Walker left to spend more time with his wife Donna, as well as his children and grandchildren. Mr. Walker was a member of Second Baptist Church Houston. Survivors include his wife, Donna (Triplett) Walker; son and daughter-in-law, Lawrence and Alicia Tate; daughter, Amanda Tate; daughter and son-in-law, Melinda and Elod Papp; six grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren. Edited - full obit may be obtained from Carroway Funeral Home, Lufkin, directors - Dec 28, 2018.
Photos
Family
Parents
Export GEDCOM
This person only · Entire connected family