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Roll Call Tribute

Keith Moser '77 May 21, 2020 1:29 PM updated: May 21, 2020 1:33 PM

Keith Allen Moser, “Mr. Moe” to many who knew him, passed away peacefully at his home on April 30, 2020, he was 66 years old.

Keith was more than a list of his accomplishments professionally or personally...he was...is...all of the following and more.

He is a Texas A&M grad, Class of 1977, and he had all the Aggie jokes to prove it.

He is Dad. He supported and loved his children, Chris and Sarah, no matter what, and he constantly told them how proud he was of who they are. Proud of their various extracurricular activities (he showed up to every one of Christopher’s shows and all of Sarah’s games and proudly cheered them on), their accomplishments (academic and otherwise), and most of all, he told them he was proud of the parents they had become. Well, what can I say, they had a great role model.

He is Pawka. Strange moniker for a grandparent you say? He was Christened with this name by his first grandchild, Sarah’s daughter, Olivia...it was the closest approximation of grandpa that she could pronounce at 18 months old and he vowed it was what all his other grandchildren would call him, hence Pawka was named. He was pleased with this name because it made him feel special, and he was.

He is Huggy Bear, the cutesy nickname he signed sweet little love notes he wrote to Grace, his partner for 45 years, it would have been 46 on July 26th. He was a devoted husband who loved without condition and who was loved in return as well. He and Grace met while students at TAMU. They were a couple from their first date and they never looked back. If you asked Keith the secret to a happy marriage he would say “She’s never wrong.” If you ask Grace the secret to a happy marriage she would say “He’s right about that.” In the end, its about mutual respect and caring deeply for the other person who makes your heart complete.

He is Mr. Moe, the name all his students at Seguin High School called him, and that every stranger shouted at him when he wore his “Mr. Moe” hat anywhere. There was this one year at NIOSA when all the happy folks shouted his name as he passed them…needless to say he did not make that mistake again. (Going to NIOSA with the hat on, not wearing the hat, we wore that thing everywhere.) He was proud of his role as an educator and proud of his nickname that harkened back to what his father was called before him. I can’t tell you how many hours Chris and Sarah spent at that school before they were ever students there. Decorating his classroom, making copies that he would need the next week, stacking books on shelves, rollerblading down empty hallways...okay, some of the things were more fun than others, but hours were put in either way. Something must have stuck with Sarah during those hours...he is one of the people who inspired her to choose a career in education (Lord knows she didn’t choose it for the fame and fortune. In fact, he always discouraged her away from education for that very reason, but it is her passion and her calling, like it was his.) Chris also was influenced by the time he spent at SHS. The computer class Keith encouraged him to take sparked his interest in his chosen career field as well.

Keith is the constant, “Be careful,” in his children’s head and ultimately coming out of their mouths when their children are up to something impossibly fun and somewhat dangerous. It was his response when Chris told him he was going to build an airplane in the backyard. Not no, of course you can’t do that, just “be careful.” When they left home for college each semester he told them to drive carefully because he doesn’t do funerals. Bittersweet that memory.

He is the fixer of all things...a talent that he passed on to both of his children. Sink clogged? Underneath it he went, with one of them right along with him holding the flashlight and incidentally learning all about how to replace a disposal. Bike maintenance? How to change bike tires and tighten the seat and handlebars? That was all dad. They thank him, to this day, for all of the things they know how to do (or can figure out how to do) because of him and his willingness to teach through example.

He is the puzzle and game lover. We would all sit around the dining room table and play spades as a family. It wasn’t long before Chris and Sarah realized that when parents teamed up they had no chance to win...so then we played boys vs. girls and mom and dad each had a handicap on their team, ha! He would take us all bowling at Southwest in Seguin. Sarah learned what a “Turkey” was and how to score a game of bowling like a pro. She probably picked up some math skills in there too (she realizes begrudgingly.) One of his favorite weekend pastimes was the Sunday crossword puzzle. He would call out the hint and any clues and whoever could, supplied the answer.

He is the consummate tattoo naysayer (when they are on his children) and the surprise tattoo collector (on himself.) Their entire lives he told Chris and Sarah he didn’t like the look of tattoos and he hoped that they didn’t ever get one. Well – Chris got one and Sarah got 10. Imagine the shock when he acquired four new tattoos in the eight years before his death; each of his grandchildren’s names tattooed on both of his upper arms. So proud was he of these tattoos that he wore sleeveless shirts whenever he could just to show them off. Needless to say, it wasn’t the tattoos he was proud of so much as the people they represented...he was so proud to be their Pawka.

He is his grandchildren’s first real encounter with the finality of loss and, most importantly, the compassion shown to those of us in mourning. The outpouring of messages and love that we have received is overwhelming and so telling. Keith’s legacy is in the lives of those students who he inspired. Keith’s legacy is also that of his impact on the people whom he generously loved and who loved him in return. His legacy is the Pawka stories that his grandchildren will tell...that his children will tell. His legacy will shine through the lives his children lead and the lives that their children will lead.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Ivan and Mary Beth Moser and his brother Richard Starns Moser.

He is survived by his wife, Grace Moser; children Christopher Aaron “Bear” Moser and wife, Amanda, Sarah Beth (Moser) Bishop and husband Tim; grandchildren, Olivia Beth and, David DeWitt Bishop; Luke Christian, and Declan Aiden Moser; sister, Linda Beth Moser and wife Kathy; brother, James Scott Moser and wife Teresa; cousin, Rodger Lewis and wife Cheri; niece and nephew Annalynn and Nathan Lynn Lewis; nephews Robert Scott and Joshua James Moser.


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