Darrell D. Shine, 81, of Silsbee, passed away at 1:55 PM, Monday, June 11, 2012 at MD Anderson Hospital in Houston after a brief illness. He was born June 4, 1931 to Anabel Lee Chance Shine and Darrell Shine Sr, from several pioneer families that date back to the earliest Anglo settlers of Hardin County in the 1830’s. Darrell was 7th generation of Hardin County.
He grew up in the old community of Fletcher centered on the South side of Village Creek where his Chance ancestors settled, attended school at the old one-room Chance School in Fletcher and graduated from Silsbee High School in 1947. He learned to love and develop knowledge of the Big Thicket and Village Creek that surrounded every aspect of his childhood, innate knowledge which would later be an enormous part of his career.
Darrell married his childhood sweetheart, Barbara Suitt and raised three daughters in Silsbee. He began his Land Surveying business, Shine and Associates, in 1956. The hard-work ethic instilled in him from his childhood prompted him to build one of the most sought-after Land Surveying firms in the state.
During his lengthy career, he has worked as a Land Surveyor in approximately 120 Texas counties, representing about half of the counties of Texas. He has mapped every parcel of land in Hardin, Chambers and a portion of Jefferson Counties. He surveyed nearly a million forest acres of Southeast Texas for Kirby Forest Industries, Champion International Corporation, Temple Eastex, Inc, and the United States Government (Big Thicket Preserve), among others. The early childhood years learning about the woods, creeks and history of Hardin County figured deeply into the man he became.
Awards include "Surveyor of the Year", presented by the Texas Surveyor’s Association in 1984 and being named the recipient of the Conrad Blucher chair for excellence in surveying, through Texas A&M, Corpus Christi in 1987. He was commissioned by Texas A&M to author a book, ‘Inland and Coastal Waters of Texas and Their Boundaries’. He also served on the Texas Board of Land Surveying from 1981-1987 and lectured at Texas A&M and Lamar University for over twenty years. He was a sought-after speaker for many years, including universities, governmental agencies and historical societies throughout the nation.
Darrell never forgot the community that reared him, serving four years as Mayor of Silsbee, and nine years on the Silsbee School Board. He was an active member of his church, serving in leadership and teaching roles.
Until his death at age 81, Darrell worked full time at Shine and Associates, and was still in demand across the state for his extraordinary expertise and 60 years of experience as a Texas Land Surveyor. He was a beloved father, grandfather, brother and friend to many.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Barbara Shine in 1993. He is survived by daughters, Betty Shine of Houston, Anna Beth Jumper, Susan Shine Kilcrease, son-in-law Dennis Kilcrease, four grandchildren, Jana Jumper, Luke Jumper, Christopher Kilcrease and his wife, Lisa Rothlisberger Kilcrease, and Andrew Kilcrease and his wife Leisa Wilson Kilcrease, three great-grandchildren, David Kilcrease, AlexAndrea Kilcrease, and Joshua Kilcrease, all of Silsbee, three sisters, Sarah Hendrix of Silsbee, Sue Shine of Fort Worth, Nancy Shine of Horseshoe Bay, Texas, beloved business partner, Nedra Foster and scores of nieces, nephews, cousins and loving friends.
Services will be held on Thursday, June 14 at 2:00PM at The First United Methodist Church in Silsbee. Visitors are welcome to the viewing beginning at 5:00 pm Wednesday, June 13, 2012 at R.S. Farmer Funeral Home in Silsbee.