Richard Paul Jares

Richard Jares of Brenham died at home of pancreatic cancer on Oct. 22, 2024.

Richard spent his life continually in motion until the very end. He enjoyed working on his numerous complex projects around the home, running with dogs in his UTV, and volunteering with the Brenham police department. He also ran over 140 marathons, loved organizing hunting trips, and traveled to many countries.

After graduating in 1969, his career as a chemical engineer and project manager started at the Union Carbide plant in Texas City. He stayed there, designing, overseeing construction, and maintaining processing units even after the plant changed hands and became Dow. He continued to work on projects as a contractor with Jacobs and URS at nearby Texas City plants after he retired from Dow.

Richard and his wife of 55 years, Jerry, have owned a farm in Brenham since the late 1970s. Richard spent his weekends tending to cows and baling hay. In 2017, he and Jerry retired to Brenham and started a new chapter as community volunteers. Richard was an enthusiastic volunteer with the Brenham COPs auxiliary, directing traffic and controlling event crowds. He was president of the Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association in 2022.

He was a lifelong learner of all things practical—from how to fix a barbed-wire fence to running electricity to a building. He built barns and other structures on his property. He would often take the time to learn how to do something himself rather than hire someone.

Richard was an Eagle Scout and embodied the principles of a good Scout, especially as a helpful, friendly, thrifty, loyal, and trustworthy person who did what he said he would do.

Richard was born on Jan. 24, 1947, the second of five children. He grew up in the Randolph AFB area near San Antonio, where his father was a Cessna T-37 training plane mechanic.

Everyone knows Richard went to Texas A&M University because he frequently wore Aggie-branded—or at least maroon—clothing. He studied chemical engineering after a professor encouraged him to change from a chemistry major.

Richard and Jerry married soon after graduation, on Sept. 27, 1969. They have two children, Andrea of Pearland and Chris of Palm Springs, Calif. Richard and Jerry have two grandchildren, Sofia and Katya.

Richard looked forward to hunting season every year. He loved being with his friends at camp or in the deer blind and bringing home elk, deer, ducks, and geese for his family. He also enjoyed fishing in the bays around Galveston County.

He was known in Texas marathon running circles because he avidly enjoyed running several each year. About a quarter of the marathons he finished were ultramarathons or endurance races of 50 miles or more. He was shortlisted for the Blue Planet Run, a cross-continental run that raises awareness for clean drinking water. He spoke passionately about the importance of access to clean drinking water for the world’s most vulnerable people. “For clean water everywhere” was his email sign-off for many years.

Richard enjoyed traveling in other ways. In the mid-1980s, Richard and his family lived in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. He worked with the Saudis to run an ethylene plant there. While based there, his family had the opportunity to travel to many countries, which brought out Richard’s adventurous spirit. He saw Halley’s Comet in Australia and climbed 18,600 feet up Kala Patthar in the Himalayas, near Mount Everest.

The family will celebrate the life of this remarkable person at a ceremony in November.

In lieu of flowers, please direct donations in Richard’s name to www.CharityWater.org/in-celebration-of-richard-jares/in-celebration-of-richard-jares.