William ”Bill” Henry Baldwin, Jr., 93, passed away Monday afternoon, September 18, 2023, following a short illness. Bill was born in Kansas City, Kansas, on August 17, 1930, to William Henry Baldwin, Sr. and Helen Patricia (Bryant) Baldwin. The family moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota shortly thereafter and Bill was raised on the family farm. He learned how to hunt and fish at the young age of 9 and helped to put food on the table during tough times. Bill also learned how to endure the brutal blizzards of winter and mosquito-infested summers.
Bill always wanted to please his parents, so he learned early the value of a good work ethic which stayed with him all his life. After high school, Bill worked with his father on the Minnesota Railroad, but within a year he joined the U.S. Navy. Bill met his sweetheart, Betty Jean Holbert at the Second Baptist Church while he was stationed at the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station. They were married on March 13, 1953. Bill found his career path with the Corpus Christi Police Department as an officer of the law for 26 years. Bill and Jean raised three children (son Jim and daughters Mary Ellen and Julia Ann), while living in Corpus Christi. After Bill retired from the Corpus Christi Police Department, they moved to Quinlan, Texas in 1980 to a beautiful home in the country. Bill and Jean loved people to come visit from their church or even complete strangers to stop by and inquire about their beautiful flower and vegetable gardens.
Bill was very involved with teaching Sunday School, singing in the choir and being a deacon for over 75 years. He had a tremendous singing voice and loved to sing solos. Bill also had a heart for serving the sick and afflicted people of his church by visiting and encouraging them on a weekly basis. Bill was also very involved with the Highland Terrace Baptist Church Tuesday Night Prayer Group. Bill loved God with all his heart and spread the Good News of Christ with everyone!
Bill is survived by his son James Bradley Baldwin and wife Donna of Rowlett, TX; daughters Julia Ann Cann and Mary Ellen Breathwit of Greenville, TX; grandchildren: Rachel, Brandy, Mark, Samantha, Nathan and Travis; and 7 great-grandchildren. Bill was preceded in death by his parents: William Henry Baldwin, Sr. and Helen Patricia (Bryant) Baldwin, his wife Betty Jean (Holbert) Baldwin and siblings: Roger Baldwin and Phillip Baldwin.
Visitation will be held at 1:00 PM, Friday, September 22, 2023, at Highland Terrace Baptist Church, 3939 Joe Ramsey Blvd E, Greenville, TX 75401. The funeral will follow at 2:00 PM, Friday, September 22, 2023, also at Highland Terrace Baptist Church. A private burial will follow immediately after the funeral at Lakeside Memorial Cemetery in Quinlan, TX. Coker-Mathews Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Pallbearers will be The Highland Terrace Tuesday Night Prayer Group, The Highland Terrace Deacons, and Jim Finney, Roy Rayburn, Varice Self, and Charles Roberts.
In lieu of flowers, a memorial can be given to the Highland Terrace Baptist Church.
