Roll Call Tribute

Joseph Ronald "J. R." Kimball 

September 16, 1935 - February 13, 2025 

Joseph Ronald Kimball was born September 16th, 1935 in St. Martinville, LA to the late Aubrey Elmo Kimball and Pearl Bordelon Kimball. He passed peacefully at home in Eastern Parker County on Feb. 13th, 2025 after a years long battle with dementia.

While he was born in Louisiana, he made Fort Worth his home for most of his life (including three different houses on Weatherbee St.). Growing up the son of a construction worker, he lived in Raymondville, TX (three different times), Castorville, TX, Laredo, TX, Houston, TX (also 3 different times), Dickinson, TX, Truth or Consequences, NM, Albuquerque, NM and Socorro, NM. Understandably he wanted to stay put in his career and adopted city.

J.R., Ronnie or Ronald as he was known attended Texas A&M and was a member of the Corps of Cadets. He graduated with a bachelor's in business administration. He served in the United States Air Force for several years and was primarily stationed in Houma, LA and Clark Air Base in the Philippines; he retired a Captain.

Soon after the Air Force, he settled in Fort Worth with his first wife, Patty and their two children, Joe and Kathy Kimball. He became an Appraiser, Realtor and Broker which matched much of his experience he had selling and managing property in Houston and later managing base housing and facilities in the Air Force. He became a Member, Appraisal Institute (MAI) in 1971. Among his many professional affiliations and leadership positions, he was President of the Greater Fort Worth Association of Realtors (1978), a Director of the National Association of Realtors, the Texas Association of Realtors, and the Appraisal Institute. Some of his notable achievements in his career included the Appraisal of England Air Force Base in Louisiana, right-of-way appraisals for the City of Fort Worth, Federal, State and County authorities, impact studies of closures of Air Bases in Amarillo and Alexandria, LA, and several published articles in The Appraisal Journal. He was called upon many times to offer expert testimony in State and Federal courts. J.R. also mentored and taught many Appraisers.

Service to his industry, community and his city was a big part of J.R.'s life. Among quite a few boards and committees he was the Chair of The Fort Worth Transportation Authority in 2001, a member of the Trinity Railway Express Advisory Committee, President of the Rotary Club South Fort Worth and even served two terms on the Tarrant County Grand Jury and was foreman for one of those terms. He also volunteered with the Boy Scouts, neighborhood associations and more.

J.R. grew up hunting and fishing with friends and family in Texas, New Mexico and Louisiana. He imbued those hobbies and skills into his children, grandchildren, nephews and nieces, and continued to hunt and fish late in life. He hunted and fished in many of the places he traveled to, for work and fun including Alaska, Colorado, Washington, Florida, Hawaii, Wyoming, Bermuda, India, and the Philippines. Besides travel and the outdoors, some of his other hobbies included reloading, bread making and wood working. Ranching was one of his other hobbies and he co-owned a small working ranch in Stephens County and raised goats and cattle; in 1992 he earned a Certificate in Ranch Management from TCU. He loved his family, career and his pets, which included many Labrador Retrievers.

He married his second wife, Mary Jo Thomas Kimball in 1975 and they had one son, Shelby Kimball. Mary Jo and J.R. were only 7 months shy of being married 50 years at the time of his death.

He is survived by wife Mary Jo, his two sisters Inez Pharo (husband Tom) and Sylvia Geeslin; his three children, Joe Kimball (wife Wendy), Kathy Davis (husband Travis) and Shelby Kimball (wife Laurel); grandchildren Jeff Davis (wife Morgan), Savannah Kimball, Reed Kimball, Carden Kimball, Seltz Kimball, Mack Kimball, Henry Kimball and Sterling Kimball, and great grandchild Layton Davis, as well as many nephews and nieces.