Pat Goolsby
“Pat,” 86, of Richmond, VA, passed away peacefully in his sleep at home on Wednesday, April 3, 2024, after a long illness. Pat was born on Feb. 22, 1938, in Houston, but grew up in Teague, (Freestone County).
Left to cherish his memory are his wife of 66 years, Diane Davis Goolsby; two daughters: Vicki Beatty (Chip) of Powhatan, VA and Leslie Libby (Scott) of Richmond, VA; five grandchildren : Robert Davis Beatty, Daniel Patrick Dolliver and Patrick Sean Beatty, all of Richmond; Reagan Margaret Dolliver of Phoenix, AZ, and Charlotte Grace Campbell of Fredericksburg, VA; one sister, Gwendolyn Goolsby Hendricks (Billy) of Madisonville; three nieces, Lisa Zummo (Pat) of Houston, Tina Luttrull (Scott) of Rockwall, and Dawn Goings- Webber of Paris, TX, and many great nephews and great nieces.
He is predeceased by his parents, Howell C. Goolsby and Vertis Jolly Goolsby and his beloved daughter Laury Lynn Goolsby, Ph.D.
Pat graduated in 1956 from Teague High School where he played varsity football and basketball and upon graduation was presented his diploma by his dad, the president of the Teague School Board. He received his B.A. in Physics and Math from Oklahoma City University, then completed his M.S. in Physics from Sam Houston University, Huntsville. He was later
Pat G oolsby inducted into the Sam Houston State University Department of Physics Hall of Fame.
Pat then enrolled in a Ph.D. program at NC State and concurrently taught a physics class at Campbell University. A year later he transferred to the University of Alabama in Huntsville.
During this time, he was also employed at the Marshall Space Flight Center by Chrysler as a senior propulsion scientist working on the second stage (Saturn 1B) of Saturn 5 Apollo vehicle destined for the moon.
After leaving Chrysler, he was hired by Reynolds Metals as a senior scientist in Listerhill, Alabama, and was later promoted and transferred to Richmond, VA as Director of Research Planning and later named National Sales Manager of energy products. During his time at Reynolds, he had five patents registered, was selected to be a U.S. delegate to the International Atomic Energy Conference in Warsaw, Poland, and was then selected to be a member of a group to Cape Town, South Africa, whose mission was to establish business relations there.
After 20 years with Reynolds, Pat retired to pursue other endeavors and interests and joined the adjunct faculty at Randolph-Macon College where he taught physics, and later at Virginia Commonwealth University where he taught general physics and the Wonders of Technology until 2008.
Pat was a proud father and grandfather. When his girls were younger, he took a special interest in their swimming, even building a rowing machine to strengthen their arm and leg muscles to enhance specific strokes.
Pat enjoyed spending time with his daughters and grandchildren and especially loved family gatherings, vacations to the beach, trips to Texas and playing pranks on his family. He looked forward to fishing trips to Oregon Inlet with his buddies, golfing, watching college football and his Dallas Cowboys.
An avid reader and history buff, Pat was very knowledgeable in world affairs. His morning started with a cup of coffee, his perusal of the morning papers, and solving the Sudoku puzzle.
He kept up with his Texas classmates over the years, especially his childhood friend Clydell McSpadden. When he and Diane attended his 60th class reunion, he was presented the Distinguished Alumni Award for Lifetime Achievement as a graduate of Teague High School.
The family expresses their gratitude to the staff and aides of Gentiva Hospice for their wonderful care, and also to his personal care givers Lamont Scott and Irene Foster for their attentiveness and companionship. A special thanks to his good friend Gonjoe “Buzzy” Winn whose regular visits always boosted Pat’s spirits.
A visitation was held at Woody’s Funeral Home on N. Parham Rd. between 5-7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 17, 2024.
Burial will be in the family plot, Greenwood Cemetery, Teague, TX, at a later date.
To read more, visit woodyfuneralhomeparham. com.