Alfred Evans Birdwell, Jr.

Sadly, the Rancho Ocio and the Rafter F. Hunting Clubs lost another founding member at the end of 2020. Alfred Evans Birdwell, Jr. husband, father and son, born on October 10, 1937, in Corpus Christi, Texas, to Doris Jean Peters and Alfred Evans Birdwell, died on December 22, 2020, in Houston, Texas. Al was preceded in death by his parents and his beloved wife of 55 years, Carolyn Eslyta Cobb Birdwell. He is survived by his daughter, Carolyn “Carrie” Birdwell Corson, and her husband Carl, of Houston; his son, Christopher “Chris” Birdwell and his wife Becky, also of Houston; his “adopted” Swedish daughter, Unni Jerndal, of Stockholm, Sweden; and his grandchildren, Emeline Birdwell, Vaughn Corson and Benjamin Corson. Al grew up mainly in Houston, he graduated from San Jacinto High School in Houston, Texas, in 1955, where he was a cheerleader, founding member and president of the Drama club and worked as an usher at the Rosedale movie house. He went on to receive a BBA, MBA and PhD with honors in Economics, Statistics and Psychology from The University of Texas at Austin in 1964 and was a member of Phi Kappa Sigma. Al and Carolyn met through mutual friends at college and married June 9, 1962, in Austin, Texas, at St David’s Episcopal Church and together they built a rich and joyful life that included 2 children, 3 grandchildren, lots of great parties, dinners out, trips to Mexico, Europe and other parts, as well as various dogs, cats and at one point some rabbits. Over the years, in addition to Houston, they had homes in Lake Conroe, Galveston and Hockley, Texas. After college graduation, Al and Carolyn lived for a few years in Mexico City where Al taught marketing research fundamentals to Mexican business leaders. Upon returning to the US, he worked for Tenneco and Marplan in marketing research before working his way up to Marketing Services VP at Riviana Foods. After 10 years at Riviana, he ran his own marketing research consultancy firm for more than 30 years which also led him to various Board leadership roles at several regional banks in the greater Houston area. He was a regular marketing and business school lecturer at The University of Texas at Austin, Rice University and The University of Houston as well as a member of the editorial review board for the Journal of Marketing. In addition to making lifelong memories on many a hunting trip, he also enjoyed gin rummy, dominos, reading and traveling; he was also an active member of several other organizations including the Galveston Historical Society, the Houston Easter Seals Society, BSA Troop 55, the Art League of Houston and St. John the Divine Church. A memorial service honoring Alfred will be held later in 2021, please contact Carrie or Chris for details.

Alfred Evans Birdwell, Jr.

October 10, 1937 - December 22, 2020