Kermit “Jinx” Hoover was called home on Friday, August 24th, to be with his Heavenly Father. He passed peacefully in his sleep at home surrounded by his loving wife, Gloria, and their three sons.

He is preceded by his parents, Kermit and Marie Bowen Hoover, and sister, Enid. Survivors include wife, Gloria Esmond Hoover, sons Cody, Rex and Matt, daughter-in-laws Brenda Lindfors and Cathy Hobbs Hoover, and beloved grandkids, Dylan, Kelly, Jenna, Kyle and Jack; and uncles Bill Hoover and Jack Hoover.

Jinx was born on September 8, 1934, at home on the family cotton farm in Mount Calm, Texas. It was there, on a youth baseball team, where young Kermit picked up the lifelong nickname of “Jinx”, after a sports writer in nearby Waco. A 1953 graduate of Mount Calm High School, he was Captain of many sports teams, Valedictorian (graduating class of six), and runner-up for ‘Best Looking Senior Boy’ (out of two).

Jinx enrolled in Baylor University in 1953 and was a Varsity Letterman in Baseball for 1954-1957. He remained lifelong friends with his teammates, played in Alumni games, and had season-tickets alongside many of them for decades. Upon graduation in 1957 , with a degree in Chemistry, Jinx served in the United States Army, as a Nike Missile instructor for NATO officers from around the world (and managed several Army baseball teams) at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas.

While at Baylor, he met the love of his life, Gloria Esmond, from Lamesa, Texas. Their first date was Baylor Homecoming. On a Three-Day Pass from Fort Bliss, he married Gloria on June 7, 1958 at First Baptist Church of Lamesa, and she joined him in El Paso. They would share their lives, raise a family of all Baylor graduates, serve the Lord, and see the world together.

After the Army, Jinx began a career long association with Hoffman-La Roche Pharmaceuticals, where he served in numerous sales and marketing positions and earned national awards from Roche Laboratories. The family moved often- spending time in Amarillo, Texas; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Nutley, New Jersey; and finally Austin, Texas. A crowning point in the last years of his career was serving as the Roche representative to the US Army bases across Europe for over five years, where he developed a love for the people and cultures of Europe.

In Austin, the family found their home, figuratively and literally, in the tiny and remote Westlake community in 1973. The schools and related activities became their focus as all three boys became graduates of Westlake High School. Gloria worked as a librarian in the Eanes School District, and Jinx served in many capacities- including Chap Club President in 1978. He originated the phrase and personally designed the iconic bumper-sticker that is still sold thirty-five years later: “Pride of the Hills”. As many of their friends relocated after their kids graduated, Jinx and Gloria stayed put and kept their roots in the community. They stayed in the same house, kept the same season tickets for the Chaps, went to Park Hills Baptist Church, and attended hundreds of their grandkids’ games and activities. The Westlake community honored Jinx and Gloria in 2009, when Head Football Coach Darren Allman and the WHS team presented them with an autographed football at the community-wide pep-rally before the State Finals. Jinx had refused to let his cancer or the chemo treatments keep him from attending all six play-off games.

Jinx and Gloria found their church home at Park Hills Baptist Church, where Jinx served faithfully as a Deacon, Bible teacher, and church leader with his best friends Carl Van Ryswyk, Bob Sawyer and Don Chapman. These four became inseparable hunting and “42” partners, wearing out far more dominoes than guns over the decades.

Jinx loved anything outdoors, especially golf. He was a Founding Member of Lost Creek Country Club, where he played for years with friends Jack Boyd, Don Ragland and Bob Wernecke. The 14th Hole, “Hoover’s Notch”, is named in his honor. Jinx had the opportunity to play many of the best courses around the world, but he especially loved the Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland and the great Scottish people. For the last ten years, Jinx and his son Matt spent the summers in St. Andrews- where they played almost every day. Jinx played over four-hundred rounds on the Old Course, which might be more than any other American. He was a proud member of the New Golf Club of St. Andrews, where Matt and he have both won club tournaments and proudly have their names engraved on trophies on permanent display in the Clubhouse. Just as dominoes overtook the focus on hunting, over time, fellowship with their Scottish friends became the main reason for their travels. They were blessed to become friends with many of the local caddies, starters, marshals, and town characters, especially Alex Spence. Jinx was loved by all in St. Andrews- the locals called him “Links Jinx,” and made him an ‘adopted son’ of the town.

Jinx inspired a generation of boys at Westlake and Baylor by showing them how to have outrageous fun with football road trips, back roads, BBQ, enchiladas, Bluebell and homemade ice-cream, swimmin’ holes, and a ‘few’ fireworks- all without a drop of liquor or a single cuss word. He is beloved by dozens of his kids’ friends who consider him “one of them.” The family and friends would travel and watch Baylor sporting events all over the country, never imaging a magical year like the last one. In his last week, Jinx loved looking at the pictures in the book “Year of the Bear/The Winningest Year in College Sports History.” What a blessing that he was able to see it all first hand.

Jinx leaves friends behind from Scotland, France, and the Swiss Alps, to New Zealand, across the U.S.A., and to the jungles of Brazil. We know where he is and we all have a smile on our faces remembering the amazing times that we had together.

The family would like to extend special thanks to Dr. Rubin de Celis, and all the wonderful personnel at Texas Oncology Center in Austin, the Cancer Research and Therapy Center in San Antonio, and the caring Hospice nurses who enabled him to stay in comfort in his own home.

Please join us for a celebration of an incredible man and a great life- visitation will be from 6:00 to 8:00 PM on Thursday, August 30th at Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home on North Lamar in Austin. Services will be at Park Hills Baptist Church at 11:00 AM on Friday, August 31, followed by a reception at the church. Graveside services will follow at Austin Memorial Park.

In lieu of flowers, a memorial gift could be made to
Park Hills Baptist Church of Austin (www.parkhillsbaptist.org)
Baylor Bear Foundation Endowed Athletic Scholarship Fund (www.baylor.edu/bearfoundation)
Eanes Education Foundation (www.eaneseducationfoundation.org)
or any other educational / charitable organizations.