Henry A. Webb

Henry A. (Hank) Webb, age 89, left this earth to join our Lord on May 9th. Hank was born on Aug. 8, 1935, in a sharecropper's cabin on the Twelve Mile Prairie in SE Oklahoma. His loving parents, Rufe and Vertie Webb (both deceased), were married for 63 years.

Hank is survived by his daughter, Tracy Webb Kaden, and sister Emogene Speegle of California. He was preceded in death by his wife Cris, sister Joyce Macy of California, and his mentor and beloved older brother, W.R. Webb. W.R. volunteered for the U.S. Navy at age 17 and, at age 18, was a decorated Navy aviator flying combat missions in the WWII Pacific war.

In the early 1940s, the Depression, drought, and the boll weevil drove the Webb family and thousands of other Dust Bowl Okies from Oklahoma to California. The family settled in Wasco, CA, where the entire family worked in the fields and orchards beside thousands of other migrant workers. For the first few years, the family lived in migrant labor camps until they were able to purchase their own home in Wasco, where Hank's parents resided for over 35 years. He took great pride that his family struggled and endured hard times during their migrant labor years, but never asked for or received any assistance from the government. Hank's parents were role models and mentors to him and his siblings and were a great source of pride. He often praised them for the sacrifices they made for him and his siblings. He credited and thanked them for the personal sacrifices they made supporting and keeping the family together during difficult times.

Hank boasted that at age 12, he was working beside his dad in a potato packing shed doing the same work and drawing the same wages as his father—a proud time for Hank. Hank attended schools in Wasco, where he was an excellent student and an outstanding athlete. He was a proud member of the Wasco High School football team, which went undefeated during Hank's senior year. He was president of several of his classes, and Student Body President and Vice President.

He served 3 years in the U.S. Army and later graduated from the University of California with a degree in Criminology. He was proud of the fact that he paid for his own education with no help from his family or the government. At one time, he worked three jobs, working at night and attending classes during the day. On Aug. 20, 1960, Hank married Cris, the love of his life, and they remained married forever. After college, Hank joined the U.S. Border Patrol, where he graduated number one in his class of 102 Border Patrolmen. He served 2 years in the U.S. Border Patrol and then became a Special Agent of the FBI, where he proudly served for almost 25 years. He received many honors and accolades for his service in the FBI. From 1979 to 1985, he served as the lead undercover agent in "Operation Border Snatch," the longest continually running undercover operation in FBI history. He retired from the FBI in 1985, and during the next several years, he was a supervisor in a West Texas multi-agency drug task force and served 5 years as the Texas State Representative to Operation Alliance, the Southwest Border States Drug Coordination Center. After leaving law enforcement, Hank founded his own private investigations and security consulting company.

His first loves were his family, friends, and horses. Hank and his family owned many, many horses, and he, Cris, and Tracy all competed successfully in horse shows, horse racing, trail riding, and endurance racing. They participated in cattle brandings, roundups, and trail drives on several large ranches in California, Montana, and New Mexico. Hank was an excellent horseman, horse shoer, and horse trainer.

In addition to family and horses, his other passion was mountain climbing. For many years, he and a few friends who called themselves "The Cloud Walkers" climbed weekly in the Franklin Mountains, Sacramentos, and Guadalupe Mountains. He also climbed Mt. Rainier, two of the tallest peaks in Mexico, and Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa. He competed in and completed the 26.2-mile "Bataan Death March" for 13 years. After Hank retired from law enforcement and the horse business, he assisted his daughter with her endurance horses and traveled with them throughout the U.S. He and his wife, Cris, loved dogs, and they rescued and rehomed many stray and abandoned dogs.

He was an amateur writer and enjoyed writing essays about his horses, his dogs, his family, and friends. He prided himself in being a loyal American patriot, and his letters often appeared in the editorial section of the El Paso Times. He composed obituaries for numerous close friends and, in the end, even authored his own.

In November of 2022, Hank and Cris made their last big move. They relocated to Tazewell, TN, on a farm with Tracy and her husband, David. While in Tennessee, he enjoyed birdwatching and the local farmers markets.

Hank prided himself in being a patriot and loyal friend to all who knew him.

In lieu of flowers, please send contributions to: Claiborne County Animal Shelter674 Ritchie Lewis Dr., New Tazewell, TN 37825claiborneshelter.com

Memorial Service: June 7th, 1 PM Sunset Funeral Home480 N. Resler Dr. El Paso, TX

Celebration of Life: June 20th, Tazewell, TN