Final Salute

Allen Joseph Darr, age 94, passed away on Tuesday, May 10, 2022. Allen was born on January 21, 1928, in El Paso, Texas to Elizabeth McCormick Darr and Oscar Darr. Above all, Allen was a devoted family man. He was married to the love of his life, Kitty, for 68 wonderful years until she died in 2020. Together, they had a loving family of four children and seven grandchildren. Allen called himself “the last of the Mohicans” because all his siblings passed before he did (Mary, Louise, Roy, and Vernon.) Allen was preceded in death by his parents, his siblings, his son, Allen Lee Darr, and by Kitty.
Allen always loved and supported his family; he was gentle, kind, gentlemanly, fun, loving, happy, and sociable. He was also steadfastly loyal and dependable. He was very close to his brother, Roy. They rode their bikes all over El Paso. When he was 16, he helped drive his sister Louise to California where her husband was stationed, and then he rode the rails back to El Paso. He had to ask for his mother’s permission to join the Navy in WWII. He was a Seabee stationed on Okinawa and Guam. He had to finish high school when the war ended. He dabbled in a few courses at Texas Western (now, UTEP), but then he made his lifelong career at the telephone company – from lineman to test deskman. He met Kitty, a Baltimore-born, city-girl and took her rabbit hunting and to a western dance. She was smitten. Her father said he was “the best damn man she had ever dated and she should keep this one!” He could fix anything, including the car when it went kaput on vacations.
After he retired, he and Kitty built a house in the country near Taylor and Thorndale, Texas where he and his grandkids planted a bunch of fruit trees. He liked to ride around his little farm on his tractor. He loved music and he could play anything on his harmonica after listening to the song a couple of times. He built beautiful dollhouses and bookcases and chairs and playhouses for his grandkids and and liked to carve faces on the ends of brooms. He was a wonderful cook and everyone enjoyed coming to his house after a long car ride to be greeted with the wonderful smells and tastes of something delicious that “Pop” had made. We will all remember his beautiful, big smile with his twinkling, blue eyes and cavernous dimples and how he always said he loved us whenever we left his house. We will never forget that.
Allen is survived by his children, Kathleen A. Darr (Ned Tuck), Daniel R. Darr (Michelle), Michael J. Darr (Lisa); seven grandchildren, Meghan, Madeline, Joshua, Michael, Chloe, Kaitlyn, and Zoe (Britt Billmeyer-Finn); as well as numerous nieces, nephews, family and friends.
ROSARY
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1, 2022
7:00 PM
PORTER LORING DOWNTOWN CHAPEL
1101 McCullough Ave., San Antonio
MASS
THURSDAY, JUNE 2, 2022
9:30 AM
BLESSED SACRAMENT CATHOLIC CHURCH
600 OBLATE DR., San Antonio
Father Chris Muñoz will officiate.
INTERNMENT WITH MILITARY HONORS
will follow in Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made in memory of Allen Darr to the SAMMinistries, 1919 N.W. Loop 410, Suite 100, San Antonio, TX 78213, 210-340-0302, because Allen was always worried about the homeless people living under the bridges.
OR, to the Jesuit Refugee Service/USA because he also worried about the plight of refugees: jrsusa.org, 202-462-5200.
Published by Porter Loring Mortuary McCullough on May 17, 2022.