Joseph Henry Rankin Colbert
88, Burnet, Texas
A celebration of life will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023, at the Ranch in Bertram, Texas, for Joseph Henry Rankin Colbert, 88, of Burnet, Texas, who died on Saturday, Sept. 9, with his family by his side.
He was born on April 1, 1935, in Columbia. He graduated from Columbia High School before serving in the U.S. Marine Corps. He was a proud Marine and forged new friendships wherever he crossed paths with a mutual Marine. His deep fondness for Germany developed while being stationed there, returning to visit often over the years.
After graduating from the University of Alabama, he returned to Columbia for several years and served as Vice President of the Rankin Company, and later as Vice President of Citizens Bank. He then moved to Austin, Texas, where he received his law degree from the University of Texas in 1964.
He worked tirelessly and built his professional career as a trial lawyer, specializing in personal injury and worker’s compensation law. Law partners, Joe Colbert and Rick Freeman, and their team of outstanding employees poured their hearts into providing justice for families recovering from life altering injuries. He was fiercely passionate about protecting individual rights against large insurance companies. For more than 40 years, he was an active committee and faculty member at the Texas College of Trial Advocacy, served as Director of Texas Trial Lawyers Association and was a Life Fellow of the Texas Bar Association. Needless to say, he was mentor to numerous lawyers and admired by many.
Apart from work, he loved the outdoors and was an avid hunter. With some of his closest friends, he traveled across North America searching for the perfect elk and the best birds. While hunting may have been the purpose of the trips, the truth is, he enjoyed the camaraderie with his hunting buddies more than the hunt.
By the time he was 40, he was dedicated member of a local running club spending most mornings running around Austin participating in local 5k and 10k races. He ran his first and last marathon at the age of 70 and settled for nothing less than the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C. His dedication and tenacity carried him through the race of life.
He enjoyed his retirement years in Burnet County and spent much of his time building the ranch on South San Gabriel River. He found comfort in the local community, took up golfing in his 80’s and spent many Friday nights at local high school football games.
He was preceded in death by his grandparents, George Henry and Salie Rawls Rankin and Joseph Beamis Colbert and Clarissa Joyal Colbert; mother, Nelle Rankin; father, David Colbert Sr.; and brother, David “Buddy” Colbert Jr.
Survivors include his sister, Sarah Clarissa “Sally” Shaw of Columbia; five children, Mark (Wendy) of Merrillville, Ind., David (Brenda) in Panama City, Fla., Becca (Darin) in Saint Paul, M.N., Alexandra (Robbie) in Austin, Texas, and Weslie (Stephen) in Bertram, Texas; seven grandchildren; his chocolate lab, Watson; and numerous nieces, nephews and friends.
In lieu of flowers, the family ask that donations be made to the First United Methodist Church of Columbia or a charity of your choice.
