Carroll Putnam Choate

Carroll Putnam Choate
July 15, 1931 – September 30, 2023

My Daddy’s hands are calloused and cut from the day’s labor. They are a perfect shield at my back in the darkest times.

My Granddad’s hands are worn and hurt. They are a steady guide on my path.

My Great-Granddad’s hands are tired and tender. They are a warm welcome to this world.

Carroll Putnam Choate’s life was the fulfillment of a dream carried by his ancestors as they led their covered wagon from Chickasaw lands in the Oklahoma Territory bound for Howard County, Texas, in 1901. The first generations worked endlessly around Big Spring to establish footholds in the often-unforgiving fields of west Texas. Then the Great Depression came.
Carroll was born into increasingly difficult times. He learned in his early boyhood years about the duty to work and provide for his family – only to find that such opportunities were too often rare and short-lived. His adolescence was a balance between Big Spring schools and ranch work often miles from home. Every week felt like a survival exercise. His fortunes took a turn for the better when he met Joyce Marie Kilpatrick, his high school sweetheart and future wife of nearly 73 years. With his charm and dry sense of humor, he convinced Joyce to marry him in June 1950.

The newlywed Choates first settled in the cotton fields of Martin County, Texas, in 1951 probably because it rained too much in Big Spring for their tastes. Their honeymoon years featured bunkhouse living on dirt floors and outdoor plumbing – a challenging combination for any young marriage. Despite hardships, Carroll felt he was making progress. His first two children, John “Dusty” and Julie Carol filled his bone-weary evenings with all the noises toddlers could muster. The Choates learned that with a single-fill tub, Daddy gets the last bath.
In 1956, when Mark “Putt” was two weeks old, the family relocated to Sand Springs thanks to Carroll’s new job at Cosden Refinery – “the kind you hold on to with your life,” he would recall. But in 1957, Carroll truly started climbing out of poverty atop broken windmills in his off hours. That year marked the establishment of Choate Windmill/Well Service. By 1959, his youngest child Laura Ann was born.

As the family business grew, Carroll was afforded in 1965 the opportunity to purchase the Choate Family’s forever home: hundreds of acres flanked by Moss Creek Lake and the iconic Signal Mountains range east of Big Spring. There, the scrappy cowboy became a cattleman as he juggled businesses, livestock, family, and multiple terms on the Coahoma School Board. The Choates moved to First United Methodist Church in Big Spring, where Carroll would lead the trustees and ushers for decades. Joyce and Carroll were also charter members of the Cowboy Barn Dance Gang and the Wednesday Night Dance Club.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Carroll’s grandchildren seemed to multiply. This period also afforded Carroll and Joyce the ability to travel the world. Thanks to his signature style, between Alaska, New York, or Old Bethlehem, other tourists took pictures of him.

Carroll’s final years were filled with new in-laws and great-grandchildren. Joyce and Carroll stopped celebrating wedding anniversaries to instead host large dance parties marking each decade together. June 2023 would have marked 73 years together had Joyce lived another month.

Carroll’s last west Texas summer did not disappoint with dry heat. With his precious Joyce gone, he took one last job: ensuring that the new family cemetery was a green, beautiful place worthy of its purpose. He spent every morning and evening listening to old dance tunes at Joyce’s graveside until his last.

Carroll Choate is preceded in death by his mother and father; younger siblings Joyce Phillips and Sonny Choate; and loving wife Joyce Marie Choate. He is survived by children: John M. “Dusty” Choate (Patty), Julie Carol Choate Johnson (Maro), Mark “Putt” Choate (Fifi), Laura Ann Choate Churchwell (Tommy). All 17 grandchildren and 26 great-grandchildren know Grandad’s love.

Visitation hours are 5:00pm to 7:00pm at Nalley-Pickle & Welch Funeral Home on Monday, October 2. The funeral service begins at 10:00am at First Methodist Church of Big Spring celebrated by The Very Rev. Katie Churchwell and Rev. Ricky Carstensen on October 3. All are welcome to follow Carroll’s family to his burial service at the Lazy C Ranch. Pallbearers are his grand- and great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to the Methodist Children’s Home (mch.org) and the Heritage Museum of Big Spring (bigspringtxhistorymuseum.com).

Arrangements are under the direction of Nalley-Pickle & Welch Funeral Home and Crematory. Online condolences may be made at www.npwelch.com

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