Elton Carroll “Bill” Oglesbee was born on July 1, 1927, and raised in Saratoga, Texas. He began a 54-year career in the oil and gas industry at 16, in the oil fields of west Texas. At 17, Bill served in WWII, in the U.S. Navy, and was stationed in Guam, China, and Manus Island, off the coast of Australia.
Bill pursued a passion for flying from a very young age, and at 19, took flying lessons and bought his own plane. He and several friends started “The Breakfast Club,” flying from Bay City Texas to various nearby cities, including Houston, Galveston and Corpus Christi, to meet for breakfast each Sunday morning.
Bill enjoyed many other pastimes, including golf, hunting, fishing, birdwatching, photography, gardening, country music, entertaining, cooking and good food. Many of the recipes Bill created included fresh vegetables raised lovingly in his own garden. His well-worn cookbook, “You Talk About Good,” featured many of his New Orleans Cajun favorites.
Bill’s love of life and people was evident in the number of friendships he maintained; relationships that lasted a lifetime he often began with a laugh, a joke or a lighthearted prank.
Bill’s career as an oilman allowed him to travel extensively throughout the U.S and the U.K. In the mid-1960s, as president of Milchem UK Oil Drilling Company, Bill moved his family to London for one year, an unforgettable experience. On another memorable trip, Bill triumphed over a 9-ft Marlin, caught in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, a place he considered to be the most beautiful in the world.
Bill’s long and courageous battle with lung cancer came to an end on September 29, 2006 in Roswell, Georgia, after having retired to Blairesville, Georgia, in the foothills of the Great Smokey Mountains. Bill was preceded in death by his mother and father, Eula and James Clyde Oglesbee, and brother, George Oglesbee of Saratoga, Texas. He is survived by his son, James Oglesbee of Houston, Texas; daughter; Elizabeth Heim of Marietta, Georgia; four grandchildren, Scott Oglesbee, Jeffrey Heim, Michael Heim, and Madeline Heim; one great-grandchild, Scott Pablo Oglesbee; and two sisters, Thelma Lois Shear of Humble, Texas, and Mildred Chandler of Saratoga, Texas.
Graveside services will be held at Old Hardin Cemetery in Kountze, Texas on Wednesday, October 4 at 4:00 pm under the direction of Broussard’s Mortuary, Kountze, Texas.
