He was "no ordinary Joe" and will be greatly missed by all who knew him.

Joe William Embrey of Hondo, 96, passed away Friday, April 13, 2018.

Born Oct. 23, 1921, in Hondo, he was the son of William Henry and Lola Belle Dutton Embrey.

Joe loved his family and they always came first with him. He treated his grandkids and great-grandkids the same way he treated his kids--spoiled them rotten.

He went to Baylor University on a football scholarship and, shortly after starting school, was drafted into the US Army and sent overseas during World War II. He married Dorothy Prescott when he returned from the service and they were married for over 40 years when she died.

Joe played semi-professional baseball for the Odessa Oilers and in the Highway 90 League. He drove a truck for nearly 30 years before he went to work for the Hondo ISD, He took care of the buses and made sure the football and baseball fields looked perfect. He loved the Hondo Owls and spent the years he worked for the school district sitting in the press box during almost every game, as long as he was able.

A lifelong member of the First Baptist Church of Hondo, he was the church's oldest living member. Joe touched a lot of lives in his 96 years and every single one he knew or who knew him has a story to tell about him. He will be greatly missed by all.

He is preceded in death by his parents; wife, Dorothy Jean Prescott Embrey; brothers, Marvin Roy Embrey, Charles J. and John Henry Embrey; and sisters, Margaret Embrey, Frances Jane "Fanny" Robertson, Mary Belle Magers, and Margie Abbott.

He is survived by two daughters; 9 grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren; and one brother.

Visitation will be from 9 to 10 a.m., followed by the funeral service at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Apr. 17, at First Baptist Church of Hondo. Interment will be at Hondo Cemetery, Oakwood Section.