LeRoi Farlow passed away Thursday, July 12 at age 85, after a lengthy and courageous battle with both Parkinson's Disease and various forms of cancer. Throughout his battles he was lovingly supported at every turn by his beloved wife Jean.

He was born November 22, 1926, in Terry, Mississippi, along with his twin brother Frederic, to Annie and LeRoi Farlow. His mother Annie died during childbirth and his father died a few short years later, leaving the boys orphaned. LeRoi and Frederic were cared for and raised in Terry, by LeRoi Sr.'s sisters, and their grandmother.

LeRoi and Frederic attended school in Terry and were involved in a local Baptist church. After their grandfather's death they moved with their grandmother and aunts to Jackson, Mississippi and later returned to Terry where they graduated from Terry High School in May 1945.

Within days of his high school graduation, LeRoi enlisted in the Army Air Corps hoping to become a pilot and join the fight. However, the war drew to a close shortly after he enlisted, frustrating his desire to become a pilot. Through the military, however, he was able to spend a year at Clemson University in South Carolina. After the conclusion of World War II, he enlisted in the Army Reserves, and then enrolled in Cumberland Law School in Tennessee, utilizing the GI Bill.

After graduating from law school he was hired by Pacific Employers Insurance Company as a claims adjuster in Dallas. It was there in Dallas, in the winter of 1953, that he met his beloved wife Mary Jean Bell and after a whirlwind courtship, they married on April 17, 1954.

The joy of their marriage was soon touched by tragedy as they lost two twin boys who were born prematurely in July 1955. This painful loss was, in turn, followed shortly by a blessing -- the birth of their daughter, Catherine Ann, in 1956.

In the spring of 1957, LeRoi moved his family to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to open Allstate Insurance Company's first office in New Mexico, having been hired by them a year earlier.

In July 1959, Leroi and Jean were blessed with a son -- William LeRoi Farlow, who was born in Albuquerque.

In 1960, LeRoi stood for the bar examination in New Mexico, and after passing, began his legal practice with nothing more than a typewriter and an old door turned into a desk. Eventually his small storefront practice became the prestigious Farlow Law Firm which specialized in personal injury, products liability, and insurance defense litigation. LeRoi loved the courtroom. He tried more than 200 hundred cases to a jury conclusion and was one of New Mexico's most experienced, passionate and respected trial lawyers. While he generally represented defendants, one of his most noteworthy achievements was obtaining a one million-dollar judgment for a paralyzed client. At the time, it was the largest plaintiff's medical malpractice judgment in the history of New Mexico.

LeRoi also loved flying, a passion which he developed during his time in the Army Air Corps. He obtained his pilot's license in 1966, and purchased a Bonanza A36, which he flew to depositions and trials across the state of New Mexico for a number of years.

LeRoi retired from his law practice in November 2002 at the age of 76 -- after 44 years of practicing law. Later that year he was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease.

He and Jean moved to Austin in 2004, to be near their daughter and her family. Over the next eight years he faced numerous medical challenges. LeRoi will always be remembered for the grace, courage, and dignity with which he met these challenges.

LeRoi loved politics, World War II history, old movies, his Bose radio, classical music and popular music from the 40's, his recumbent bike, chess, Microsoft Flight Simulator, popsicles, ice cream, chicken fried steak, Mexican food combination plates, his cat Lola, and his granddogs Lady Bug and Gus.

His greatest joys, however, were his wife Jean, his two children Catherine and Bill, and his six grandchildren. He enjoyed nothing more than having one of his grandchildren curled up in his lap drawing pictures or playing.

LeRoi is survived by his wife Jean; his daughter Catherine Cooper and her husband Wade of Austin, Texas, their children Caroline Smiley and her husband Brian, Ryan Cooper, Brooke Cooper, and Marshall Cooper; his son Bill Farlow and wife Lorretta of San Diego, California, and their daughters Anna Farlow-Bettendorf and her husband John of Lincoln, Nebraska, and Caitlin Farlow of San Diego, California; his twin brother Frederic Farlow and Frederic's wife Sylvester of Houston, Texas; and his half sister Minnie Louise Alvis and her husband Lester of Jackson, Mississippi. He was preceded in death by his parents and his half brother, William Ernest Farlow, of Jackson, Mississippi.

The family would like to specifically thank Dr. David Morledge, Dr. Frederick Shaw, Dr. Laurence Tokaz and Dr. Ryan Tierney, as well as the nurses, technicians and staff at Texas Oncology for their compassion and care.