Billy Carroll Ragsdale

Billy Carroll Ragsdale passed away on Sunday, August 6, 2017, in Waco. Services will be 1:00 p.m., Thursday, August 10, in the Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey Funeral Home Garden Room. He will be laid to rest at the City of Levelland Cemetery. Billy was born on November 24, 1945, in New Orleans, Louisiana, to Chester Ragsdale and Jean Mills VanCleave. He lost his father at the young age of 2. Jean married Frank Thompson in 1950 and from that point forward, Frank was Billy’s father. In 1962, at the age of 16, the family, now including Billy’s two brothers, Ricky and Kerry, moved to Levelland. He graduated from Levelland High School in 1964. After high school, he got married and had one daughter, Dawn. He was studying Mortuary Science at Gupton-Jones College when he was drafted into the Army during the height of the Vietnam war. During the war, he served as a medic in both evacuation facilities and high combat areas. After the war, his interests in the medical field faded, and he decided he wanted to see the country and enjoy some solitude, so he started driving a truck for a living. Billy loved watching NASCAR and football. He loved Baylor, Texas Tech, and most of all the Cowboys. Billy had a huge heart that was capable of great love. He may not have had much, but if he had a dollar you had dollar. Billy is preceded in death by his father, Chester Ragsdale; his mother, Jean Mills VanCleave; his brother, Kerry Wayne Thompson; and his sister-in-law, Janett Thompson. He is survived by his step-father and step-mother, Frank and Sandra Thompson of Lubbock; brother and his wife, Rick and Sue Ann Thompson of Lubbock; nephew, Kerry and Bonnie Thompson and their two boys, Ryder and Davis, of Lubbock; niece, Lynsey and Ryan Reber and their two children, Rilynn and Rhett, of Lubbock; step-brother and his wife, Jack and Judy Marshall and their sons, Chance and Cole, of Lubbock; step-sister and her husband, Jill and Rob Marr and their three girls, Maddie, Claire, and Ella, of Flower Mound; nephew and his wife, Brooks and Marla Broussard and their children; and other great aunts, uncles, and cousins. The family invites you to leave a message or memory on our “Tribute Wall” at www.WHBfamily.com.