Robert William Hall

August 6, 1936 - September 12, 2021

Robert William Hall, 85 passed away peacefully at home on September 12, 2021.  Rob was born in Gateshead, England to Robert W. Hall (Senior) and Margaret (Peg) Lennon.  Rob met the love of his life, Margaret Graham in his hometown.  They were married on October 4, 1958 and have had a wonderful marriage of 63 years together.

Rob obtained a degree in Mechanical Engineering from King's College, now Newcastle University, served 2 years in the English Army, and completed an apprenticeship at Clark Chapman's and before beginning a global adventure with Margaret.

They raised their family in Zambia—where two of their children were born, Canada—where they spent 11 years, Trinidad, and Kuwait before settling in Borger, TX where Rob finished his career.  They retired to Katy in 2002.

Rob's career was divided between the mining and oil/chemical industries.  His talent was in running the operations and maintenance activities of refineries (Nickel, Oil, and Ammonia).  During the gulf war Rob spent several months traveling into southern Iraq from Kuwait every day to assess and get the oil refineries operational again.

He had a wonderful sense of humor, was very easy to talk to, and showed genuine interest in others.  He established very strong and lasting friendships throughout his life.

Rob had an insatiable curiosity about people, places, and cultures.  Over time he developed a particular interest in North Africa and Arabic speaking people.  In retirement he planned and took an extensive solo trip through that region—with Timbuktu as the ultimate destination.  He self-taught himself to speak Arabic and took every opportunity to engage with Arabic-speaking strangers to increase his understanding of the language.

Rob loved working with his hands and was a relentless handyman.  He amassed an impressive array of tools in his garage "workshop" and was constantly working on one or more "projects".  He had a knack for designing and making clever solutions for the home.  He also was a cryptic crossword and jigsaw enthusiast.  He completed hundreds of jigsaw puzzles, many of them more than once.

Rob is survived by his wife, Margaret Graham, of Katy; son, Robert Graham Hall, of Menlo Park, CA; daughter, Lianne Jelson, of Katy; and grandchildren, Andrew Robert Jelson, Nicholas Alexander Jelson, Lauren Nicole Hall, and Graham Daniel Hall; brother, Derek Hall of Isle of Bute, Scotland. He was preceded in his death by his parents and his son, David William Hall.

Family and friends are invited to attend Rob's celebration of life at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 18 at St. Paul's Episcopal Church; 5373 Franz Road, Katy, Texas 77493.

In lieu of flowers, the family wishes memorial contributions be made to St. Paul's Episcopal Church. Donations can also be made online by visiting https://giving.ncsservices.org/app/giving/stpaulskaty .