On Thursday, February 17, 2022, the world lost an incredible man. James Michael “Mike” Huckaby was born on January 25, 1947, in Tampa, Florida to Otha B. and Mildred Huckaby. James spent his entire life giving to others. He led by example and did so much for the Buda and Hays County communities. He was known for his contagious laugh, vibrant smile, and outgoing personality. He was always the life of the party.
After high school, James enlisted in the US Army where he proudly served and protected our freedom while working toward becoming a Sergeant in the 101st Airborne. He later served in Vietnam, where he was decorated with two purple hearts and numerous other awards. Upon completing his military service and throughout his life, he remained extremely patriotic and supported all branches of the military.
He married the love of his life Pamela Marie Quick on May 2, 1970 in Austin, Texas and moved to Buda, Texas in 1972 where they became lifelong residents. His unconditional love for Pam was evident as they accomplished many goals together and were by each other’s sides every step of the way. Every January 25th was a great family occasion because he and Pam shared the same birthday. He always joked that he should have married her on that day. They raised three children together and his greatest achievement was supporting them in their endeavors. He rarely missed an event and was by their sides each step of the way, even in their adult years. He enjoyed many activities with his family, including traveling, hunting, fishing, racing cars, rodeo, sporting events, raising cattle, and especially Vegas.
He was a member of the Plumbers and Pipefitters Local Union 286. He owned and operated H-Industrial Construction Services and was a fair, honest, and giving individual who cared deeply about his employees for over 30 years. While operating H-Industrial, he was a member and past President of the Mechanical Contractors Association.
Throughout his life, he belonged to many civic organizations, where he developed lifelong friendships that he held dear to his heart. He was a lifelong member and past President of the Capitol Rod and Gun Club. He also served as a volunteer firefighter for the Buda Volunteer Fire Department in the 1980’s. He later served as a commissioner on Hays County ESD #8.
He was one of the Founding Members of the Buda Lions Club, where he served the Buda and Kyle communities and dedicated thousands of hours of his time to community service. It was important to James “Mike” to invest in our youth, and he was very involved with the Buda Vo-Ag and Hays County Livestock Show where he served as President on the Stock Show Board for several years. He felt hard work and dedication was a requirement and instilled these values in his own children with the help of these organizations.
But perhaps his greatest community honor was serving as the announcer of the annual Buda Wiener Dog Races for the past 24 years.
Throughout the years, he also endured “bumps in the road” as he called them, dealing with everything from a kidney transplant to a quadruple bypass and many, many other “bumps.” He always remained positive, upbeat and pushed through these challenges like any real champ would. He is our Hero, and we will miss him more than anything in the world. He was the best husband, Daddy, Pops, father in-law, brother in-law, uncle, and friend.
James is preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Dan; his mother and father in-law Boots and Doris Quick; brother in-law, Monty Quick; and nephew, Keith Cooper.
He is survived by children Heath Huckaby (Melly), Clay Huckaby (Angie), and Mandy Thomas (Chad). Although he loved his children dearly, being called “Pops” by his 3 grandchildren, Emery, Huck and Lilly was his biggest accomplishment. James is also survived by his sister-in-law and brother-in-law Dianne (Sis) and Darrell Cooper, and nieces Danni Cooper and Clee Upchurch.
A Celebration of Life for family and friends will be held at 1pm on Friday, March 4th at Buda City Park & Amphitheater. James will be laid to rest with military honors in a private family burial at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Buda Lions Club in James’ name at the following link: https://budalions.com/
Checks can be made payable to: Buda Lions Club, PO Box 1034, Buda, Texas 78610
Arrangements by Harrell Funeral Home
