Jesse Bruce Oates III

The adjacent graves of the Jackson’s are the uncle and aunt of Unkie and Charlotte. Harmon was their mother’s (Sybil Jackson Oates) brother.

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Please take a few minutes to learn about who Unkie was:

Jesse Bruce Oates lll (Tony) was born September 16, 1948. He passed on June 22, 2020.

Tony was born in Bonham, Texas to parents, Jesse Bruce Oates Jr. and Sybil Jackson Oates. He was a 1966 graduate of Haltom High School.

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In honor of my Unkie Jesse Bruce (Tony) Oates III, who passed away on Monday, June 22, 2020.

I could not let my thoughts and memories of my Unkie go undocumented or unnoticed , I think his memory will live on by telling our stories and entertaining those who didn’t have the pleasure of knowing him. I tell you, if I were rich I’d have a movie made about his life as it was an entertaining and amazing one.

My unkie was a caregiver, he loved his family and made himself available for each and every single one of us. He never married or had kids so his nieces became his kids and later when my nephews came along they, too, joined the register of students of Unkies “school”.

We were all very close to him, he was our babysitter and our transportation to and from school, from the time we started elementary until we learned to drive. He would wheel up to West Birdville Elementary or Haltom Jr High in his big ole 1977 light blue Pontiac LeMans wearing a pair of sunglasses, looking like Sheriff Buford T. Justice from the Bandit; which he so graciously introduced us to. Not to mention he helped us recite the lines on queue. Oh, and speaking of driving, he’d often get a hankering for a snack (after a few cold ones) and send my sister to the Kroger grocery store via Denton Hwy when she was about 12, to go get him a Lemon Pie or some other random snack food. Of course he was riding shotgun, for training purposes; I mean it was 10pm or later most times, so she needed the guidance of an adult. Ha ha ha!

He was our instigator, our mentor, our curse word vocabulary builder, our life coach and best friend. He had more fun than anyone I knew and he knew how to entertain us. I won’t say this too loud, but when I was in kindergarten, he would come pick me up from school and we’d go hang out at Little Fossil Park . I’d play on the playground while he, at about 31 yrs old, chilled out in the car, listened to music and waited patiently for my sister’s time to get out of school. It was so much fun for a kid to have such a cool Unkie. Oh, did I mention that if I played hard and needed a drink, he’d give me a few sips of his good cold beer. I’d stand in the front seat of the LeMans sipping on a beer, as he smoked a cigarette...then he’d yap at me for drinking too much of it. A kid can't get a break, LOL!

One other thing that stands out about Unkie was that he was a food connoisseur, his signature meal of hot dog wieners (sometimes microwaved) plopped in a slice of white bread was his late night go to. Don't get me wrong...he loved home cooking too -- except for all vegetables, chicken, and turkey. Lol!

He also loved anything my sister “whipped” up for him at “Sharyn’s Shack.” Want to hear about “Sharyn’s Shack?” Well, when we were elementary age we spent every summer with my Unkie, he still lived with my Pawpaw (my grandpa) at that time. We got to spend a lot of quality time with them whenever time allowed. So anyway, we decided around midnight one night that we were hungry and needed a midnight snack, and thought it would be fun to “play” restaurant at the same time. So we created a paper menu, written in crayon and ink pen based on pantry stock and then fired up the stovetop. Unkie sat in his recliner in the living room probably watching Archie Bunker and ordered up something off our menu. Who knows what it was, but I guarantee it was a hot mess. It could have even been a dang hot dog on a slice of bread! But we all ate it and then headed off to bed. Well, the next morning while we all slept in, my PawPaw got up to a trashed kitchen and woke the house up yelling at us. OMG, it was hilarious how mad he was at the mess we made, but still an awesome memory I’ll never forget. Unkie let us get away with murder (figuratively speaking of course!!)

One last story for your entertainment: one night we got mad at the neighbor man and, with a little encouragement from Unkie, mixed up just about everything you can possibly think of from the refrigerator...it was mustard, mayo, ketchup, salad dressing, potted meat, milk, eggs, left over food, canned dog food and who knows what else. It looked and smelled terrible but we poured it all over that man’s truck!! We thought this prank was the funniest thing ever until the next morning when my Pawpaw went out to sit on the driveway and drink coffee…..the old cranky man across the street approached my Pawpaw (while we all slept in -- Unkie included) and told him it looked like someone had “shit on his truck!” Ya’ll, we were terrible! And my Pawpaw never knew the perpetrators were his sweet granddaughters and Unkie!! Do you see the pattern here?

Another thing I want to mention about Unkie is his signature everyday look: in the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s he would wear a pair of Wrangler jeans, a stylish button up plaid shirt and a pair of flip flops. In the summer, the jeans were stored and a pair of plain cotton athletic shorts were the style. His accessories consisted of his Playmate Igloo cooler and foam coozie. Later on in life he was more comfy in a plain pocketed T-shirt (designed by the fashion house of Dickies Workwear) with his black elastic waist athletic shorts or a fancy new pair of PJ pants he’d get for Christmas, accompanied by his house shoes.

He didn't give a crap about peoples’ opinion, and lived his life the way he wanted: comfy and casual.

Ok, I’ll wrap this up with a few memories that pop into my head. If there is anything that intrigues you, please ask for more details on his shenanigans. I’d love to share more, but don’t want to bore you:

The cassette tape recorder is new to the market and he had one. Oh the stuff we recorded.

The weird neighbors in the bedroom window, we stood on the dresser spying on them. Unkie instigated it! We got busted by my Great G-ma!

Prank calls in the 80’s! Oh you bet, he taught us to use the phone book and make prank calls. No one was exempt!

Looking at Christmas lights; oh it can be sinister...if you are with Unkie!

Tummy trimmers and chin exercises….stretch mark reduction….he was our personal trainer.

We’d clean him out of loose change and crisp $1 bills to walk to the corner store for fritos, bean dip and a coke. Every time we got a chance. I swear he contributed to weight problems. :)

Need cigarettes, ask a child to run in the convenience store for you. Tommy’s on Broadway to be exact, Unkie will sit in the car and wave at the clerk with a smile, as an 8 year old orders up 2 pks of Vantage Longs.

History lessons, oh he loved History, politics, and current events. I would go sit with him for hours and just talk about these subjects .

Want to hear a joke? I bet he can tell you one you've never heard. He kept printed copies handy to share with us kids. (most inappropriate,lol)

My Unkie was like no other. If you didn't know him you missed out. If you did, you have your own set of memories of him that likely bring a big smile to your face. He was loved by his family more than you can imagine. He was the definition of one of a kind, generous, special, genuine, honest, loving, caring, humorous, smart, soooo smart and just plain amazing person.

We will all miss him everyday , but I am thankful that I spent time with him every week for the past year and a half (except for during covid). I am grateful that Chris got to know the Unkie that we all adored, they share their own set of memories, laughs and political conversations.

I am thankful that I got to talk to him a week ago and see his huge smile and share a laugh about a current event…..and his need for a can of squirt cheese. :)

PS just one last thing- one of his favorites- Beans, beans, the American fruit, the more you eat the more you poot, the more you poot, the better you feel, so eat your beans at every meal!

Unkie, I love you . And we all miss you dearly.

Lisa Hamann