Phillip Riley Fitzgerald of Houston, and Port O’Connor, Texas, passed away on January 17, 2022, in Port O’Connor. He was the son of Kinzie Lee and Lila Riley Fitzgerald. He graduated from Austin High School in Houston in 1954 where he lettered in Football and Swimming. He attended the University of Houston, where he received a scholarship to play football for the Cougars. After his football career ended, he enlisted in the US Army and pledged Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity, graduating with a Bachelors’ of Science degree in Geology in 1958.
After graduation, he served in the US Army as an officer in the Field Artillery in Germany, ultimately achieving the rank of Colonel through the US Army Reserves. During his time in Germany he met the love of his life, Charlotte Bea Lovelace. They were married in Ingolstadt, Germany, and returned to Houston, to start their family, residing there until 2017, when they retired to their family retreat in Port O’Connor.
Upon returning to the states, Phillip went to work as a Geologist at Exxon before becoming a commercial real estate broker. He started Anderson, Fitzgerald & Giammalva, Inc. along with his partners and built a successful commercial and residential real estate firm in Houston, TX.
Phillip was a prolific outdoorsman and conservationist at heart, and grew up fishing and hunting around Galveston Bay and the Texas Coast. Phillip was a founding member of Gulf Coast Conservation Association, now Coastal Conservation Association, or CCA. He was the first Chairman of CCA Texas Parks and Wildlife Committee, a position he maintained until his retirement. Phillip was also Chairman of the Change of Tides book committee, which provides a narrative history of the CCA published in 2000.
Above all, Phillip was a loving husband to Charlotte, deeply saddened after her passing in June of 2021. He was a wonderful father to Cece and Melissa, instilling in them his love for them and the outdoors, always teaching and imparting his knowledge of fishing, hunting and conservation of our natural resources. He was known to his grandchildren as “Big Daddy” and loved each of them with all his heart.
He is preceded in death by his loving wife, Charlotte Fitzgerald; Survived by daughters Charlotte Fitzgerald McFadin and Melissa Fitzgerald (Brent) Harrell; brother Frank (Patsy) Fitzgerald; grandchildren Kinzie Sullivan, Phillip Harrell, Lila Harrell, nephews Blake Fitzgerald and wife Jackie, and numerous cousins.
Celebration of Life was held on Friday, January 28, 2022, at 2:00 pm at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church. Private graveside burial at Forest Park East on Saturday, January 29, 2022 at 10:00 am. A memorial service in Port O’Connor will be held at a later date.
The family would like to express our deepest appreciation and gratitude to the caregivers at Senior Helpers and Hospice of South Texas, as well as the many friends and family for their support. A special thanks to the Port O’Connor EMS for their services and help during this time.
In lieu of flowers, donations in honor of Phillip Fitzgerald may be made to the Coastal Conservation Association at www.ccatexas.org/donate, Hospice of South Texas https://hospice-vic.org/donate, or The University of Houston Giving at UH/Cougar Pride.
