Arch Black

Arch Black (1991)

Arch Black, age 92, longtime resident of San Angelo, Texas died peacefully in his sleep on February 5, 2022 in Seattle, Washington.

He was born Archie Lee Black on May 13, 1929 to Thomas Howard Black and Myrtle Dear Black in San Antonio, Texas.  He grew up in the Great Depression with three siblings in a 2-bedroom frame house built mostly by his father near the Sunny Slope section of that city.  He graduated from G.W. Brackenridge High School in May 1946, completed two years at San Antonio College, and then earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Texas at Austin in 1950.  Upon graduation, he worked for Conoco in New Mexico and the Texas Panhandle.

At about the same time, he met Royce ‘Kate’ Bullard at the Alto Frio Baptist Camp.  They fell in love and married on February 17, 1951.  As they planned their wedding, Arch received a draft letter and had to report for Army duty right after their honeymoon.  He was honorably discharged with rank of corporal in 1953 after serving near Edgewood, Maryland.  Returning to San Antonio, he worked as a store manager for the H.E.B. Grocery Company and later joined Sears, Roebuck & Co. in the credit division.

In 1961, he accepted a promotion to credit-department manager with Sears in Odessa, Texas, and the family became West Texans!  In 1964, he joined the American Bank of Commerce as an officer and led the conversion to IBM mainframe computers with intelligence and fascination.  In 1968, he moved the family to San Angelo, Texas and assumed the position of President at Texas Bank, where he remained active even after his retirement in 1997.

Arch and Royce were long-time members of Baptist Temple in San Antonio, Crescent Park Baptist Church in Odessa, and First Baptist and Southland Baptist churches in San Angelo.  Arch was known for his engaging and entertaining Sunday-School classes and was a positive influence on many lives.   Both Arch and Royce centered their lives around family and service to church and community.  They also enjoyed gathering with friends and family, particularly when it involved iced tea, coffee, and the domino game “42”!  He volunteered his time with countless organizations including United Way, Rotary Club, Tom Green County Library Board, San Angelo Board of City Development, Salvation Army, Girl Scouts, Fiesta del Concho, Concho Valley Regional Food Bank, and Howard College San Angelo Foundation.

His son Jimmy remembers him this way: “white dress shirt, dress slacks, dress shoes, bald head, athletic build, room-filling personality, and delight in the laughs of family and friends.  Many of these laughs were responses to his witty sense of humor and his appreciation for human foibles, especially the deeds of scoundrels.”

His daughter Kathy remembers: “Family vacations with Dad were joyful.  Once we got on the highway, he would suddenly break out in song!  Selections included ‘Onward Christian Soldiers’ (complete with vigorous hand movements), ‘Texas Our Texas’, and many other rousing numbers, to the infectious delight of us all.”

His daughter Judy remembers her dad as “a once-aspiring commercial artist who chose the safer route of becoming a businessman. It was definitely the right choice for him. Throughout his life, he loved sports, particularly softball, table tennis, golf, and tennis.   To his chagrin, none of his children excelled at sports, but we all appreciated his love for competition and excellence.”

His sister Evelyn remembers “Archie often teased me, for example, when I refused to disobey Mama by crossing busy, four-lane Rigsby Avenue with him and our brother Raymond, both of whom paid little heed to Mama’s rules.   But he and Raymond also patiently taught me how to ride a bike, walk on stilts, and climb trees.  The two of them, only a year apart in age, were inseparable then and are much missed now.”

Arch was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Royce, his parents, and his brothers Howard and Raymond, both of San Antonio.  He is survived by his sister, Evelyn Walker of San Antonio, his children Jimmy and wife Gwen Black of Centennial, Colorado, Kathy and husband Erich Bechtel of Midland, Texas, and Judy and husband Forrest Thompson of Kirkland, Washington.  He is also survived by nine cherished grandchildren and eleven beloved great-grandchildren ranging in age from eighteen years to six hours old at the time of his passing.

There will be a public memorial service for Arch and Royce at 10am on April 23, 2022 in the Worship Center of Southland Baptist Church, 4300 Meadowcreek Trail, San Angelo; phone: (325) 949-9633.   All who knew or were touched by them are invited to join his family in this service of remembrance.

The family requests that any donations in Arch’s memory be made to the Alzheimer’s Association.   Here is the  link for his tribute page:

http://act.alz.org/goto/ArchBlack