Willie Kwiatkowski

Willie Kwiatkowski, 81, passed away on May 17, 2025 at the High Hope Care Center. Willie was born on November 13, 1943 in Brenham, Texas to Stanley and Mary Kwiatkowski and was baptized on November 14, 1943 by Rev. Charles Weisnerowski at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Brenham. He attended St. Mary’s Catholic School through the 6th grade. Willie was a factory worker and worked at the Steadley Company in Brenham which later became Leggett and Platt for over 40 years making box spring frames for mattresses. In those days he was paid by piece work and would brag about how fast he could put together a frame.

Willie was a typical country boy who enjoyed raising pigs, rabbits, chickens, and pigeons. His hobbies included fishing at the Brazos River, hunting at the Latium farm, and trapping coons and selling the hides. He was very good at working on and fixing old tractors, as well as his own automobiles. Willie also enjoyed playing pitch with his friends and neighbors.

Once Willie met his wife Florence, she turned him into a cattle farmer of which he knew nothing about. She knew when things needed to be done and would give him instructions and he just went with it….when to fertilize, cut hay, bale hay, when the cows needed vaccinating, when a cow was about to have a calf…. Something he grew to love.

Willie had two daughters and took the time to teach them to love the outdoors. He would take our family and our cousins out to the farm in Latium and we would camp out by the pond, sleeping in the bed of the truck under the stars. He also thought it was funny to tell us ghost stories before bedtime for which he would get scolded by mom telling him “how do you expect them to sleep”.

Willie was very fond of animals and had many pets. He was soft hearted and would go out of his way to make sure they were fed and cared for. He was especially fond of his cat Pedro, who was his best buddy.

Willie loved to BBQ on Sundays and even though sometimes it was blackened more than we liked, we ate it just the same. He liked those dark burnt crunchy pieces along with his beer. He also had a special mopping sauce recipe of which the main ingredient was beer and we were never sure how much went into the sauce and how much was consumed.

Willie’s favorite TV show was Family Feud. Not sure why, but if you tried to get him to do something while it was on, you had to wait and because it was turned up so loud you could not talk to anyone in the house.

Willie also had a home remedy that some might think twice about. He was a tobacco man and if anyone got a bee sting, ant bite, or cut he would fix it right up by wadding up the chew and applying it to the bite. It really did work every time!

Willie was a loving caregiver to his wife when she could no longer take care of herself due to crippling arthritis. He did the best he could until he became ill himself. He was a man of few words but knew what needed to be done and just did it.

Willie is preceded in death by his parents Stanley and Mary Kwiatkowski and his brother and his wife Alphonse and Mary Kwiatkowski. He is survived by his loving wife of 57 years, Florence Kwiatkowski; children Veronica Kubeczka and her husband Greg, Teresa Brending and her husband Gary, nieces and nephews, Liz Kainer, John Kwiatkowski, Kathryn Tamez and her husband Demetrio.

A visitation for Willie will be held on Tuesday, May 20, 2025 from 8am to 6pm at Brenham Memorial Chapel. Family will be present from 4pm until 6pm. A rosary will be recited following the visitation beginning at 6pm. The funeral mass will be held Wednesday, May 21, 2025 at 10am at St. Mary’s Catholic Church located at 701 Church Street, Brenham, Texas with burial to follow at Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery in Latium at 7901 Rolling Creek Road, Burton, Tx 77835.

Serving as pallbearers will be Greg Kubeczka, Gary Brending, John Kwiatkowski, Demetrio Tamez, Ron Lanier, and Freddie Brending.

The family would like to thank all who provided great and compassionate care for him including Dr. Francisco Leal, all the staff at Baylor Scott and White Hospital in Brenham, College Station, Temple, Brazos Valley Hospice of Bryan/Brenham and the staff at High Hope Care Center.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery PO Box 2074, Brenham, Tx 77834 or Brenham Animal Shelter, 1804 Longwood Drive, Brenham, TX 77833.

Services are in the care of Brenham Memorial Chapel, 2300 Stringer St., Brenham, TX 77833. 979.836.3611 Condolences may be shared at www.BrenhamMemorialChapel.com