Dorcy Leith Hughes Watler, 91, died March 30, 2014, at Presbyterian Village North (PVN) in Dallas, where he had resided since 2007. He died from complications of Parkinson’s disease.
Dorcy was an outstanding example of the Greatest Generation. Tested in war and an exemplary citizen in peacetime, he was a man of his word who could be counted on by family, friends, church or community. He was always there with love or support, usually long before he was even asked.
Dorcy was the loving and devoted husband of Pauline (“Polly”) Collins Watler, who predeceased him in 2006, the proud father of sons, Hughes, Mark, and Paul, and the proud grandfather of Kevin, Tracy, Blair, Gregory and Reid. He was the loving brother of Mary Amanda Holmes of Port Arthur.
A Rosary will be recited at 7:00 p.m., Wednesday, April 2, 2014, at Broussard’s Mortuary, 2000 McFaddin, Beaumont. A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 11:00 a.m., Thursday, April 3, 2014, in the Parish Hall of St. Anne Catholic Church, 2715 Calder Avenue, Beaumont, with interment to follow at Magnolia Cemetery, Beaumont.
Dorcy was born on October 6, 1922, in Port Arthur, Texas, the first-born to his parents, Dorcy L. Watler and Eulalie Coe Watler. He enjoyed an all-American boyhood in Port Arthur where his father worked as a merchant seaman aboard tankers for Gulf Oil Corp. and his mother was a traditional, stay-at-home mom. His parents had emigrated to Port Arthur from Grand Cayman, B.W.I., and Dorcy lived in Grand Cayman on two extended occasions as an infant and young boy. Dorcy was baptized in the Presbyterian Church in Georgetown, Grand Cayman, in 1923.
Dorcy joined the Boy Scouts in 1935 and earned the rank of Eagle Scout in 1939. He was a member of the Order of the Arrow. He lived the Scout Oath and Law through-out his life.
Dorcy graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in 1941. He enrolled at Texas A&M College in the fall of 1941 and was a member of the Corps of Cadets. Before the end of his first semester, the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor plunged the United States in war and Dorcy was soon swept up into World War II. He was sworn in to active duty in the U.S. Army in March, 1943. After basic training, ASTP service and officer candidate school, Dorcy was commissioned a Second Lieutenant on September 15, 1944. He sailed for France that fall and entered combat on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1944, in Gambschein, Alsace, France. Dorcy served as a platoon leader in Company C, 232nd Regiment of the 42nd Infantry “Rainbow” Division. He remained on the front lines until he was wounded in combat on Easter Sunday, April 1, 1945, near Brittenbrun, Germany.
Dorcy was awarded the Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster for valor in combat and the Purple Heart for wounds received in action. However, of his many Army medals and commendations, he was most proud of his Combat Infantryman Badge which he received after 30 days of service in battle. Dorcy served in the occupation of Germany and Austria until he left Europe in May, 1946. He was honorably discharged from active duty in the Army as a First Lieutenant in June, 1946, and served in the Army Reserve until 1972, retiring at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. After the war, he returned to a joyous reunion with his family in Port Arthur and re-enrolled at Texas A&M in the fall of 1946 to continue his studies as an architecture student.
He soon met Polly Collins, the love of his life, who was also a Port Arthur native and a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School. Polly and Dorcy were introduced through a blind date arranged by mutual friends during Thanksgiving weekend in 1946. Polly was working in the accounting office of Gulf Oil in Port Arthur where she had served through-out the war effort. Polly and Dorcy were married in St. James Catholic Church, in Port Arthur, on September 6, 1947.
Dorcy graduated from Texas A&M with a Bachelor of Architecture degree in May, 1948, and earned his license from the State of Texas as an architect later that year. From 1947 to 1950, Polly and Dorcy lived in College Station-Bryan while Dorcy completed his architecture degree and then began his career as an architect.
In 1950, Dorcy accepted an offer to join the Beaumont architectural firm of Stone & Pitts and he practiced architecture in Beaumont until his retirement in 1987 from White Budd VanNess, the successor firm to Stone & Pitts. Dorcy was privileged and proud to have provided his professional services in the design and construction of numerous public schools, campus buildings at Texas A&M University, the University of Houston and Lamar University, and commercial and industrial buildings in southeast Texas and southwest Louisiana. He was an active member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) during his professional career.
Dorcy and Polly remained residents of Beaumont through-out their marriage. They were blessed with the birth of their first son, D. Hughes Watler, Jr., in 1948. Their family grew with the birth of Mark Collins Watler, in 1951 and Paul Christopher Watler, in 1954.
Dorcy and Polly provided a loving, traditional post-war family life for their sons. In 1959, Dorcy founded Boy Scout Troop 85 under the sponsorship of St. Anne Catholic Church. Dorcy served as Scoutmaster from 1959-67 while his sons were active in the troop. He devoted countless volunteer hours to Scoutmaster duties to the benefit of his sons as well as dozens of their friends and other boys. Dorcy and Polly were enthusiastic supporters of their sons’ school and extra-curricular activities at St. Anne School and Kelly High School.
Dorcy served on the city of Beaumont Beautification Commission and a term as president of the Southeast Texas Chapter of the Texas Society of Architects. He was active in the Beaumont Lions Club, the Beaumont A&M Club and was a long-time A&M Century Club member. He was elected to the St. Anne Parish Council and also served many years as co-chair of the Building and Grounds Committee at St. Anne Church with his life-long friend Ed Hogan. Dorcy was active in the Rainbow Veterans Association and attended monthly chapter luncheons while later living in Dallas.
In his later retirement years, he remained involved in helping and serving others in his community. He and Polly volunteered at Some Other Place and Meals on Wheels. After relocating to PVN in Dallas following Polly’s death, he served as president of the residents’ council, a reporter for the PVN newspaper and a trustee of the PVN supporting charitable foundation. Even as Dorcy contended with the advancement of Parkinson’s and old age, he made new friends at his retirement community, maintained a cheerful, uncomplaining disposition and continued to be thrilled in spending time with his family.
Dorcy and Polly’s lives were blessed with grandchildren, including their first grandchild, Shelly Diane Watler, who died in a tragic accident in 1981, a few months after her second birthday. Dorcy was later blessed as a grandfather with the birth of Tracy Rene Watler, Emily Blair Watler, Gregory Leith Watler, and Christopher Reid Watler. He was also the proud grandfather to Barbara’s son, Kevin Manahan.
Dorcy was a parishioner at St. Anne Catholic Church in Beaumont for more than 56 years and St. Patrick Catholic Church in Dallas for seven years. In their later years, Dorcy and Polly were active members of the “49’ers” (seniors group) and regularly attended a weekly Adoration of the Sacred Host at St. Anne’s. Polly and Dorcy were honored by their family and friends with a celebration of their 50th Anniversary on September 6, 1997, at which they renewed their marriage vows. Dorcy was a faithful and loving care-giver to Polly in her final years as she battled dementia.
Dorcy is survived by his devoted sister, Mrs. Charles (Mary) Holmes of Port Arthur. He is also survived by son, D. Hughes Watler Jr. and daughter-in-law, Barbara Watler; grandson, Kevin Manahan; granddaughter, Tracy W. Guara and her husband, Chris; son, Mark C. Watler; and grandson, Gregory L. Watler, all of Houston; and son, Paul C. Watler and daughter-in-law, Julia A. Watler; granddaughter, Blair Watler; and grandson, Reid Watler, all of Dallas; and future granddaughter-in-law, Shannon Dodds of Houston. He is also survived by his brother-in-law, Maj. Gen. Harold E. Collins (retired) of San Antonio; and sister-in-law, Mrs. L.A. (Kate) Collins of Schenectady, New York; along with numerous nieces and nephews.
Memorial contributions may be made to the scholarship fund at Monsignor Kelly High School, 5950 Kelly Drive, Beaumont, Texas 77707 or to St. Anne Catholic Church, 2715 Calder Avenue, Beaumont, Texas 77701.
The family gratefully acknowledges the compassionate care provided to Dorcy at PVN and Faith Hospice.
