Erath County is in mourning after the loss of Precinct 4 County Commissioner Jim Buck, who passed away last week.
“There is a big hole sitting up here today,” County Judge Brandon Huckabee said during Monday’s commissioner court meeting which was paused to allow county officials and the public to attend Buck’s service.
“He was a great man and served this community well. When I thought about running for this position and since I’ve been in this office people would tell me how great the roads are, and how Jim Buck is responsible for that,” Huckabee said.
Judge Huckabee said he was a friend of Buck’s and he would miss the daily conversations they would have both about county business and just the world in general.
“A lot of times it was just about family, life, his kids and taking road trips,” he said. Huckabee along with all of the commissioners offered their prayers to the family, and encouraged citizens to offer their own in support.
Buck had been a commissioner since January of 2019, but his life had prepared him for the role long before he ever took office.
Known as a hardworking, diligent man, Buck is originally from Stephenville, graduating in 1975 from SHS.
After a stint of farming in Kansas with his brotherin- law, he returned to Erath County in 1984 and began working for his father-inlaw Jimmy Shinn, with Shinn Construction.
His world was full of opportunities to learn about construction, dirt work, machinery and roads—an asset that served him well as county commissioner. He began B&S Excavation in 1992 with his best friend Michael Dale Stone, and then in 2012 he began JB Farm and Ranch Contracting with his daughters and son-in-law.
He was also a man of routine who went to Peacock’s for breakfast almost every morning, and ordered the same thing, so the staff often had his food waiting on him.
A living testament of ‘early to bed, early to rise...’, he would got to bed around 7 p.m. and wake at 4 a.m. He also treated his dog to a sausage biscuit almost every day.
Buck was known as someone who loved his family especially his daughters fiercely as well as the community he served.
“He loved the people of Precinct 4, and they loved him,” his daughter Jamie Buck Shipman said.
His daughter Jennifer Buck-Aikman said she never heard anyone say anything negative about her dad as a commissioner, and they often complimented the job he did.
Both daughters said their dad prepared them for his passing, though that doesn’t make the loss any easier.
Another difficult loss for the family is that the Buck name has died since he had two daughters and three sisters. Although the name will not carry down, his beloved daughters are honored to carry on his legacy.
“He should have probably had sons, but instead he taught his daughters. He taught us dirt work, he taught us how operate equipment, how to build roads and how to take care of ourselves,” Aikman said. “And how to carry on his legacy, and that’s what we will do. There is not a doubt in my mind that is what we will do.” Part of that legacy is how to work for what you want, and hard work is a quality that Buck put tremendous importance on.
As a family man, Buck was married to his wife Deborah for 51 years before his passing, and his daughters described their parents’ marriage as full of love with a little bit of orneriness.
“He’d poke at her, and she’d poke back,” Shipman said.
Buck also loved the outdoors, and his family would share time at area lakes, or taking trips to the mountains in Colorado and Wyoming.
“He was integral to our daily lives. He also loved the holidays,” Jaime said.
Despite his daughters being grown, Buck would call them early on Christmas morning ‘complaining’ that they weren’t yet at the house, and that Santa had already came and went.
He also loved his grandchildren, greatgrandchildren and just sharing time with them.
With the approval of Governor Greg Abbott, Judge Huckabee ordered all flags at half staff in honor of Buck from Friday, Sept. 25 through Monday, Sept. 28.
“It was an honor for him to serve the people of Erath County,” Aikman said. “He was proud of the title of county commissioner.”
In commissioners court, Buck routinely made the motion for the county to ‘pay the bills’ and not a single commissioner would take the motion away from him, as a sign of respect.
On Monday, when the agenda item was approached, a pause led to a somber moment as everyone felt his absence.
“I know no one wants to do this …” Huckabee said.
“I’m going to mess this up, but I move that we pay the bills,” Commissioner Dee Stephens said, honoring the legacy of a friend and dedicated co-worker.