John Edward Harris

January 6, 1927 - December 28, 2021

John E. Harris passed away on December 28, 2021 in Conroe, TX, just nine days short of his 95th birthday. Having reached his 94th birthday, John lived longer than any other man in the Harris lineage. He was born January 6, 1927 in Leesville, LA to Jesse Edward and Percy Simmons Harris. John was a long time resident of both Baton Rouge, LA and Houston, TX and most recently moved to Conroe, TX. John and his wife Jean Simkulet Harris were married eight years. Their blended family included his three sons, Phillip, Wesley and Rodney Harris and Jean’s children, Charles and George Simkulet, Mary Lou McClanahan and Peggy Slay. John retired after many years from WFI in Houston. He had previously spent many years at Southwest Fabricators in Houston and Delta Southern Co in Baton Rouge. During his tenure with Southwest Fabricators and WFI, he was privileged to serve on the board of several national regulatory agencies such as ASTM, ASME and “N” Stamp and participated in writing many manufacturing standards for the oil, gas, and nuclear industries. John also served in the U S Army at a rank of Tec 4 during WWII. He was stationed in the Philippines during this time, and worked as an electrician, building and maintaining power lines and power systems on US military bases. He was honorably discharged on December 13, 1946. John is survived by wife Jean Eileen Harris, three sons, Phillip (wife Carol), Wesley, and Rodney Harris, two grandchildren, Becki Knight (husband Aaron), and Amanda Braithwaite (husband Ed), and five great grandchildren, Lexann York, Frank, Ethan, Laura and Leslie Braithwaite. John is also survived by a sister, Elizabeth Northington and a brother, Thomas Harris, along with Jean’s children Charles, George (wife Deanne), Mary Lou (husband Jack) and Peggy (husband Roy). John was preceded in death by his parents, Jesse and Percy Harris, first wife, Sytha Seniff Harris, mother of his three sons, and second wife, Joyce Hodgson Harris. A memorial service will be held January 29, 2022, 11 am at April Sound Church, 67-1/2 April Wind Dr., Montgomery, Texas .