Edgar Allen Luttrell

Edgar Allen Luttrell, 89, passed peacefully to be with his Lord and Savior on Tuesday, August 4, 2015. Ed was born January 20,1926, in Galesburg, Illinois, son of Edgar Luttrell and Rebecca Aileen DeWitt.
His early years were filled with hardship and deprivation after the 1929 stock market crash plummeted the country into the Great Depression. In Ed's own words, his parents were able to feed their young family "due in part to the foodstuffs that were brought back from our visits to the farm of my mother's parents and sister, Aunt Frances". He often spoke of riding on the handlebars of his father's bicycle, holding a rake and hoe as his dad pedaled, to tend the family garden. In order to earn a few cents to supplement the family income, he held several odd jobs, including door-to-door magazine sales, a paper route, head usher and doorman at a theater, cream tester at a farm store, and rodman for the railroad.
In 1939, at the age of 13, hardships began to lift when his father finally secured employment with the Chicago-Burlington-Quincy Railroad. In 1943, at age 17, Ed graduated from Galesburg High School. He entered Knox College, attending only two quarters before enlisting in the Army Air Corps in May, 1944. He was honorably discharged in 1945 after World War II was over. After discharge he earned a Bachelor's degree from the University of Illinois in 1949.
In 1950, Ed met his future wife, Maxine Louise Smith, while they were both working at A.C. Nielsen. They were married on September 29,1951, in Galesburg and soon moved to Dallas, Texas, to escape the bitter Illinois winters and to start a family. They lived in Dallas for 63 years and in the same house for the last 54 years before his passing.
Ed had a long, successful, and rewarding career at Texas Instruments, where he worked as Comptroller and took pride in his business acumen. During his time at Texas Instruments, he served as President of the Texins Credit Union, was awarded Tl Work Simplification Certificate, and was a member of the National Association of Accountants and American Management Association. In 1970, he earned his Master of Business Administration from Southern Methodist University.
A very goal-oriented and devoted man, Ed focused on being a good provider for his family and motivating his four children to grow to maturity with a better education and opportunity for a better life than the one he had growing up. His children remember countless happy hours at the lake picnicking, boating, and water skiing, with him at the helm.
Ed retired from Tl in 1989 after 37 years of employment. His retirement years were filled with his favorite pastimes - woodworking and playing cards. He was eager to teach gin rummy to anyone willing to play and enjoyed hours of card playing with his children and grandchildren. He was an all-around handyman, and could fix most anything around the house. In his retirement years, Ed and Maxine attended Scofield Memorial Church in Dallas.
Ed is preceded in death by his parents and brother, Kenneth. He is survived by his loving wife of 63 years, Maxine, son Paul (Kristin), daughter Jean Allmon (Lenny), son Bruce (Barbara), son Cliff (Sherry), ten grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, and sisters Shirley Pierce and Joyce Glore.
A memorial service will be at Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery on Friday, September 11, at 12:30 pm. In lieu of flowers, his family requests donations to be made to the Alzheimer's Association at www.alz.org/donate.