Joseph Tee Watt, Jr., of Beaumont, died on Tuesday, Jan. 23. He was 90.
He is remembered as a kind and generous man, a teacher, friend, and mentor to many throughout his life. He traveled widely and was a lifelong learner, enjoying reading and music and being involved in his community.
Dr. Watt was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, raised in Laredo, Texas, and lived in Beaumont since 1965. He spent most of his professional career as an electrical engineering professor at Lamar University and served in the U.S. Army Reserve, where he retired with the rank of colonel.
After earning his engineering degree at Rice University, he worked for the General Electric Company for four years. He came to Lamar in 1965 after completing his doctorate in engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. He developed new courses in digital systems and computers and supervised the engineering department’s Sun Computer installation. Dr. Watt served as director of Engineering Cooperative Education from 1984 to 1992. He retired in 1996 but continued to teach part-time for several years after that. He also taught English as a Second Language at Beaumont’s Literacy Depot.
His 30 years of service in the U.S. Army Reserve included teaching at the Army Logistics Management Center and mobilization designee assignments with the Strategic Communications Command and the deputy chief of staff for Research and Development.
Dr. Watt’s survivors include his daughter, Dr. Kara Lynn Watt Stewart of Fort Worth and her husband Daxton Stewart; son Chad Eric Watt of Dallas and his wife Jennifer C. Wang; former spouse Sharon McIntyre Watt of Fort Worth; and grandchildren Kathryn McKelvey Stewart, Elise Claire Stewart, Sabrina Grace Stewart, Linus Carter Watt, and Archer Joseph Watt. He was preceded in death by his parents, Joseph Tee Watt, Sr., and Gladys Kellogg Watt.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 8, at First United Methodist Church of Beaumont. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial contributions to be made to Some Other Place, 590 Center St., Beaumont, TX 77701, or at www.someotherplacebeaumont.com or to the Professor Joseph T. Watt, Jr. Scholarship in Electrical Engineering at the Lamar University Foundation, P.O. Box 11500, Beaumont, TX 77710 noting "In memory of Joseph Watt" in the memo line, or at www.lamar.edu/give .