Richard Russell "Whitey" Roberts

Richard “Whitey” Roberts of Miles passed away Tuesday at Ballinger Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center. He was 84. 

Whitey was born Nov. 2, 1941, in Rochester, N.Y., and was the third child of Rozell and Martha Roberts of King Ferry, N.Y. Known as “Dick” or “Dickie” to his upstate New York friends and family, he grew up on a dairy and learned the value of hard work. And perhaps, even as a boy, he was destined for a career in sales. He and his childhood friend, Clint Wise, spent one Saturday going around to people’s trash cans and picking out magazines in good condition. Then they went door to door selling them until each had enough money to buy a piece of lemon meringue pie and an RC Cola at the local drugstore. 

He graduated from Union Springs High School in 1960, where he played football, tennis, and intramural sports and served as the FFA President his senior year. He also served on The Frontenac yearbook staff and often spoke highly of his classmates and teachers, including Mr. Frank Vasquez, who taught World History and taught him mnemonic strategies that would serve him well throughout his life. When his father died in his senior year, Dick went to live and work on the Giles Dairy Farm to help support his mother.

After graduation, he joined the Air Force and served four years as a non-Morse radio interceptor, memorizing and copying code, earning accolades as an expert marksman, and receiving numerous commendations. In the service, he picked up the nickname “Whitey” because of his blonde hair, which had bleached nearly white from spending so many hours outside playing tennis and participating in other outdoor activities. He was stationed at Clark Air Base in the Philippines, Lackland AFB in San Antonio, and Goodfellow AFB in San Angelo, where he was a proud member of the 6945th Security Squadron. 

In 1963, while at Goodfellow, he met Dorothy Stringer, a farm girl from Runnels County, at the Rendezvous Drive-In in San Angelo, and they began dating, eventually marrying on Oct. 17, 1964, at Johnson Street Church of Christ. Following a honeymoon trip to visit his sister and her family in Miami, Fla., they made their way to Rochester, where Whitey began his career in sales. It only took one northern winter to convince Dorothy that she didn’t like all the snow and ice, so they moved back to San Angelo, where Whitey worked numerous sales jobs, including with Allstate, Shepperson’s Furniture, McDuff’s Electronics, Lacks, and Trend Furniture. He and Dorothy eventually owned the BYOB Water Store in San Angelo before their retirement. She preceded him in death at Christmastime in 2020. 

An avid baseball fan, Whitey enjoyed collecting baseball cards and other memorabilia, coaching Little League, umpiring games, and watching his beloved New York Yankees. He was a walking encyclopedia of baseball trivia. In Miles, he was a longtime member of the Lions Club and was named Lion of the Year one year. He also served on the Miles ISD school board for many years, including as President, and he was proud to have served at a time when a bond issue passed to build new facilities and upgrade others in need of repair. He was a staunch supporter of the teachers, coaches, students, and high school athletics. A member of the Miles Booster Club, Whitey ran the down boxes at football games for many years and could always be counted upon to help scout opposing teams. He was also known to get into mischief, primarily with Charles Ehrig. The pranks they played on one another are legendary. 

He loved reading espionage/thriller novels, playing solitaire on the computer, and working on crossword puzzles. One of his greatest joys was watching his granddaughter, Katherine, participate in school activities and compete in AKC dog shows with Petit Basset Griffon Vendeens (PBGV), pointers, and basset hounds. He also enjoyed talking sports with her husband, Lawson, and was excited about the upcoming arrival – Lord willing – of their baby, his great grandchild. Mike was his computer go-to guy, and he knew when Whitey called and said his name in a certain inflection, Whitey’s computer wasn’t working correctly, and Mike would be making a trip to Miles.

Whitey is survived by his daughter, Pam, and her husband, Mike Howell, of San Antonio; his granddaughter, Katherine, and her husband, Lawson Price, of San Marcos; his brother-in-law, Larry Ray, of Miles; a nephew, Jeff Ray, of Miles; a niece, Christi, and her husband, Tanner Hess, and their children, Amanda and Jacob, of McLean, Texas; a sister-in-law, Sue Stringer, of San Angelo; a niece, Richanda Brunet, and her husband, Brandon, and their daughter, Elora, of Lubbock; a son, Randy Roberts, and his wife, Lynda, of Amarillo, and special classmates and high school friends, Lois Bowman and Ron Ray, of upstate New York. 

There will be no funeral services. For those who wish to remember Whitey in some way, please consider donating to Mrs. Paige (Ehrig) Ernhart’s Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) group. Whitey thought the world of Paige and of the students who have competed and won national-level awards. Donations may be mailed to Miles FCCLA, in care of the Miles ISD administration office, P.O. Box 308, Miles, Texas 76861. 

The family wishes to thank the nurses and physical therapists with Ballinger Home Health and Hospice and the nurses, support staff, and administrators at Ballinger Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center, where Whitey spent the last weeks of his life.

You all are true angels.