Roy Franklin Cole
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Roy Franklin Cole was a father of two and a friend of many. He passed away suddenly on the afternoon of March 3, 2022, in Fort Worth Texas at the age of 67 after a week-long battle with COVID and pneumonia. He is survived by his twin brother Ed; siblings Billy, Susie and Annie; daughte, Christine; and his son, Christopher who was with him in his last moments.
Roy was born in the dead of night on December 13, 1954 in Midland, Texas, the first of identical twins. Born into a ranching family with a long legacy of horsemanship, his early years were spent riding and working with horses. Still in their diapers, Roy and his twin brother Ed would ride around the ranch atop Shetland ponies, helping their father work cattle. You might say that was Roy's first vehicle. He loved anything that moved, and the faster it went the happier he was. The boys grew and the horses got bigger. Roy and his siblings would spend weekends barrel racing on massive gray Quarter Horses, and using the winnings to get into trouble in and around Odessa High.
In high school Roy was introduced to the motorcycle, which became a lifelong passion of his and through which he met many of his closest friends. He raced motorcycles all through college, eventually becoming a nationally ranked rider and surviving many brushes with death along the way. No matter how hard the fall, he always got back up, even late into his 60's as he continued racing motocross. The man could not be kept down.
Roy's love of learning, of working with his hands, his sense of adventure, and his loyalty to friends were the forces that moved him into motorcycles, cars, photography, skiing, scuba, and eventually shooting, where he became an internationally recognized competitor and coach alongside his brother Ed. Roy traveled to 5 continents to compete in long range shooting matches, making friends with folks from all walks of life. It was said of Roy that he could go to almost any country in the world and have a friend waiting for him.
Between his many hobbies, Roy (somehow) found time to graduate from Texas Christian University, teach economics at the University of North Texas, then earn a Masters in International Management at Thunderbird School of Global Management in Phoenix, AZ. It was there that he met and married Ana Milena Pe?a, had Christopher and Christine, and spent the next few decades in their Fort Worth home, showing up to every school event then heading home to weigh out grains and reload bullets for his next Palma match.
Aside from his many adventures and accomplishments, Roy will be remembered for his altruism. His generosity spanned the world - sponsoring families in developing countries, loaning what he had to friends in need, and going out of his way to be a good neighbor. He was a Christian man who lived by the values of his faith, and in his last years was learning Hebrew in his free time. He will be missed deeply by all whose lives he blessed. May the tenacity with which he lived inspire us to live fuller, more daring lives, and have some stories to tell when we see him again.
Funeral: 2:30 p.m. Thursday, March 10, 2022, in Greenwood Chapel, Fort Worth. Visitation: 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Greenwood.