Billy Joe Hartis, Jr.

Billy Joe Hartis, Jr., 63, our Billy, went to be with our Lord on Saturday, January 4, 2025 at 11:28 p.m.

Visitation: 12:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Saturday, January 11, 2025 in White’s Chapel of Memories, 130 Houston Ave., Weatherford.

Funeral Service: 2:00 p.m. Saturday, January 11, 2025 in White’s Chapel of Memories.

Interment: Annetta Cemetery, Annetta.

Billy was born August 23, 1961 in Fort Worth, son of Billy Joe Hartis, Sr. and Virginia Alta (Davis) Newkirk. He was saved at the age of nine years old at a Baptist Church in Fort Worth. The Pastor was Jessie Simons. Billy attended Worth Heights grade school in Fort Worth and graduated from South Garland High School in Garland. 

Billy’s first job, at the age of 16, while he was in high school, was washing dishes in Woolworth to pay for his car. His second job was at Sears Warehouse in Garland. Sears sent him to Kankakee, Illinois to open a new warehouse. After five years in Illinois, Billy chose to quit Sears and come home. He had worked for them for 16 years. His third job was with Lauras Hallmart, where he worked as warehouse manager for over 20 years. Billy was there until he had a massive heart attack, for which he had surgery on February 16, 2018. He retired after the heart problem and then had one health problem after another.

Billy is survived by his mother, Virginia Newkirk; his sisters, Sherrill Jean Blakeley, Jo Jean Foster, and Lavetta Ferguson; and his brothers, Lester Newkirk, Jr. and Barry Newkirk; sons, Stephen, and Henry; two granddaughters; one grandson; and one great-granddaughter.

God gives his best soldiers the toughest battles.

Our family is like branches on a tree. We all grow in different directions, yet our roots remain as one.