Lloyd Franklin Pitts
Lloyd Franklin Pitts, 98, formerly of Wesson, died Monday, March 16, 2009, at his home in Texas.
Services will be held at Sparkman/Hillcrest, 7405 W. Northwest Highway, Dallas, Texas 75225 on Thursday, March 19, from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. Following a private interment, a memorial service will be held at Park Cities Baptist Church, 3933 Northwest Parkway, Dallas, Texas 75225 on Friday, March 20, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. in the main sanctuary. A reception will be held in the Church Parlor immediately following the service.
Born on October 7, 1910 to Addie Mae Sandifer and John Loyd Pitts in Wesson, he graduated from Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Wesson, in 1930 and attended Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. In 1935 he married Mary Martha McCann of Brookhaven.
An independent oil and natural gas producer for almost seven decades, Pitts participated in the drilling of more than 3,000 wells in exploration for oil and natural gas. For 12 years, he was Chief Executive Officer of an international geophysical company.
While he was an activist in his industry, Pitts also made time for involvement in a significant number of community organizations. He helped found the Dallas Council on World Affairs (now the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth) and went on to serve as Chairman of the Board and Chairman Emeritus.
He worked with the Baylor University Medical Foundation, serving as Chairman of the Board and a member of the Executive Committee. Pitts was a member and past President of Park Cities Rotary Club, a member of Dallas Citizens Council and a lifetime Deacon of Park Cities Baptist Church, where he was a member for 60 years.
Copiah-Lincoln Community College honored him as Alumnus of the Year in 1973 and again in 2003 with the Distinguished Alumni Leadership Award.
At SMU, where he was a member of the Board of Advisors of the Maguire Energy Institute, he established four endowed Presidential Scholarships, a Scholars Fund and an endowed lecture series in oil and gas.
Survivors include: daughter, Linda, and her husband, William A. Custard; grandchildren: W. Allen Custard IIII and his wife, Mason, Martha E. Custard, and Laura Custard Hurt and her husband, G. Ellison Hurt III, and four great-grandchildren, all of Dallas; and brother, Troy N. Pitts of Wesson.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a memorial to Copiah-Lincoln Community College, P. O. Box 649, Wesson, Mississippi 39191, or a charity of your choice.