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By Bev Odom/The Red River Sun—
WELLINGTON — I believe God puts us in positions for special reasons.
Having known Dr. Dick Ellis of Fort Worth because I’m the Wellington editor of The Red River Sun will forever hold a special place in my heart.
Dr. Ellis made his last trip to Wellington in February when his nephew Dan Winters drove him for a visit to Collingsworth County Museum.
I received the news Sunday morning, July 12, from his childhood friend of 85 years, Edmond Schaded of Tyler, that Dr. Ellis passed early that morning following heart surgery a couple weeks prior. Edmond had talked to his friend on the phone one last time the night before.
Dr. Ellis called me randomly since our first contact only 10 years ago, and if I couldn’t answer, he left a very detailed message. Often, he wanted to visit about something concerning a newspaper article or obituary after receiving his copy of The Sun.
In a call on June 18, Dr. Ellis mentioned celebrating his 92nd birthday April 24. He said he hoped to find Wellington phone books from the 1930s to trace addresses of friends and family and planned to contact Doris Stallings at the museum.
He always mentioned his friend Bill Hatch, classmates Yvonne Brewer and Edmond and wife Kay. He most likely had just talked to local historian Lameda Black and would end the call by inquiring about my husband Neal.
“Dick loved Wellington,” Edmond said. “During the high school ex-students reunions, he would want to drive up and down familiar streets in town and roads in Collingsworth County. That was a passion with him because it would bring back endless memories.”
See Dr. Ellis’ obituary on page 9A and stroll through an array of his visits to Wellington on 10A.
