Zollie Carlton Steakley

Zollie Carlton Steakley went to his heavenly home on Thursday, November 5, 2020, after a brief illness. His family is comforted by the fact that he is now in heaven. Zollie was born in Temple, Texas, on June 6, 1976. When he was only six weeks old, his parents moved to Sweetwater, Texas, where he lived until he graduated from Sweetwater High School in 1994. He was a top ten academic graduate of his class. He then matriculated at Baylor University. While attending Baylor, and much to the relief of his parents, he earned an academic scholarship. He was an active member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity. Baylor conferred his Bachelor of Arts degree upon him in 1998, and he then entered Baylor Law School. He graduated from Baylor Law School on November 4, 2000, where he was academically ranked the highest in his class. He was admitted to the State Bar of Texas on May 2, 2001. In doing so he was following the trail that was blazed by his great uncle, Texas Supreme Court Justice Zollie Coffer Steakley, Jr. and his father, Zollie Carl Steakley. He then joined the prestigious Waco, Texas law firm of Campbell, Cherry, Harrison, Davis, Dove, P.C., which is now Harrison, Davis, Steakley, Morrison and Jones. Zollie received many well deserved honors in the course of his career as a lawyer. He was an extremely accomplished litigator and successfully represented his clients in a variety of matters. He was recognized as one of the “Rising Stars of Texas Law” in Texas Monthly Magazine and, since 2005, was recognized by the same publication as a “Super Lawyer”. The Texas Trial Lawyers Association presented Zollie as the first recipient of the Reich Chandler Outstanding Advocate Award, an award given for professionalism, tradition, faith and a deep commitment to justice. He worked in Baylor Law School’s advocacy program and served as an adjunct professor in the law school teaching Consumer Protection and Products Liability. He was admitted to all the Federal District Courts in Texas as well as all Courts for the State of Texas. As is obvious, he always, in everything he did, strove to be the best. In addition to his scholastic and professional accomplishments, Zollie was also a fine athlete. In high school he excelled in basketball and was named the most valuable player of the entire district to which his team, the Sweetwater Mustangs, belonged. While attending Baylor, he was an active member of the Baylor Men’s Volleyball team. After law school, he played and excelled in golf. He also followed his dad’s footprints and enjoyed hunting and fishing. He and his dad enjoyed, each year, their annual fishing and/or hunting trips. He was a great father. Nothing was more important to him than the lives and well-being of his three daughters. He included them. He encouraged them. He coached them. He praised them. He did everything within his power to make them become the very best they could be. He simply loved them deeply and completely. He was also a good man. He was fun. He was happy. He always had a smile on his face. He was warm and loving - a “hugger” - to all who knew him. Those friends who are comforting the family almost always begin their recollection of Zollie by saying: “I remember the first time I met Zollie...” They then recount how gracious and personable he was. He always put others first. God gave him the ability to read people and sense their needs and their interests. And the needs and interests of others were always more important to him than his own. He was thus a good friend and helper to so many people. The world was a better place because of his him. Zollie is survived by his three daughters; Anna Christine Steakley, age 18, Margaret Jyl Steakley, age 14, and Carlton Grace Steakley, age 9; and by their mother, Jessica Eberle Steakley, all of Waco, Texas. His daughters were and will always remain the first loves of his life. He is also survived by his adoring sister, Scarlett Ruth Steakley Mercer and her husband, Stephen Shane Mercer, of El Paso, Texas; his nephews, Zollie Clayton Mercer and Leonard Guthrie Mercer; his mother, Pamela Haynes Bouche’ of Waco, Texas, and his father, Zollie Carl Steakley, and his wife, Michelle, of Sweetwater, Texas. He was preceded in death by his paternal grandparents, Dr. H. Jene Steakley and Bobbie Eubanks Steakley, Colorado City, Texas; and his maternal grandparents, Robert N. (Don) Haynes and Marjorie Boyd Haynes, Tyler, Texas. The family regrets that, due to the pandemic, it is not possible to have a time to honor his life with a memorial service. We hope that we will be able to do so at a later time. A viewing is scheduled for Monday, November 9, 2020, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. at Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey Funeral Home in Waco, Texas. Burial will be at a later date and attended only by the family. Those wishing to honor his memory are invited to make a donation in his name to Baylor Law School. The family invites you to leave a message or memory on our “Tribute Wall” at www.WHBfamily.com