Frank Douglass

Frank Eugene Douglass, 94, of Kerrville, TX and formerly of Euless, TX passed away peacefully on Friday, February 28, 2020 with his family at his side. Viewing will be held Wednesday, March 4 from 5 to 7 pm at Grimes Funeral Chapels in Kerrville. Services will be held Thursday, March 5 at 11 am at the Kerrville First United Methodist Church with a reception to follow. Committal services will follow at Garden of Memories Cemetery at 1 PM. Memorial donations may be made to the Parkinson's Foundation and Honor Flight.\r\n\r\nFrank was a loving father and husband and served his country and community in many ways. A proud native Texan, Frank was born in Houston, TX on June 29, 1925 to Young Eugene Douglass and Ethel Haag Douglass, the family moved to Dallas during the depression years, and then on to San Antonio where Frank attended lower school into high school. In 1940 they moved Jacksboro, TX where Frank graduated from Jacksboro High in May of 1942. After graduation, he tried to enlist to serve in World War II but was denied due to his age. Upon turning the ripe old age of 17, in July 1942 he and three of his classmates enlisted in the Navy. In late December, the four left Texas by train for boot camp in San Diego, CA and went their separate ways from there. Frank initially landed in Oklahoma for gunnery training under the instruction of actor Lt. Robert Stack. Frank trained in 12 different US cities for 11 months due to the fact that they didn't have enough ships at the time on which to place the sailors. He and his crew eventually flew to the Admiralty Islands to join the newly commissioned aircraft carrier the USS Kadashan Bay (CVE-76) in the South Pacific. Frank served as a turret gunner on a torpedo bomber at the time the ship was severely damaged by a kamikaze pilot, nearly sinking the ship. He was honorably discharged after the war in December 1945. \r\n\r\nSoon after graduating from Texas Tech with a BBA degree in 1951, Frank married Dale Lankford of Chillicothe, TX and became a sales representative for Proctor and Gamble. Frank went on to work for Affiliated Food Stores in Dallas and was the first President of Affiliated Federal Credit Union in 1959. Frank and Dale moved to Euless, TX where they raised two sons, Stephen and Cary. Frank served the City of Euless on the Planning & Zoning Committee and was a City Councilman for 13 years. He was also a long time member and Past President in the Euless Lions Club. But Frank and Dale are best known for owning and operating Euless Florist for 37 years. They retired to Kerrville in 1996 and set out in their RV traveling to all 48 lower states and Alaska. He loved to hunt, snow ski and talk for hours on the ham radio. He was active in the Airmen Club of Kerrville, Sons of the American Republic and also the Hill Country Amateur Radio Club. Frank was an active member of First United Methodist Churches in Euless and Kerrville and served as an usher at countless services. \r\n\r\nHe is survived by his son and daughter in law, Cary and Amanda Douglass of Austin; grandchildren Will and Nick Douglass; sister Jeanne and brother H. A. Buddy Douglass; and nieces Linda, Beverly, Elisa, and Amanda. Frank was preceded in death by his parents; wife of 55 years, Dale; their son, Stephen; and Frank's older brother, Young Douglass.