Obituary of Leland A. Hodges

Leland Allen Hodges, Jr., loving father, grandfather and husband passed away June 1, 2019.Leland was born August 1, 1928 in Waco. He moved to Fort Worth in 1932 and graduated from Paschal High School in 1945 at the age of 16. He then went on to study at Vanderbilt University on scholarship. Upon his father’s death one year later, he transferred to the University of Texas in Austin where he earned his B.A. and JD. After he graduated from law school, he enrolled in the U.S. Navy where he spent two years at the Naval War College in Newport, RI.In June of 1956, Leland married Margery Ann Leonard of Fort Worth. Leland and Ann had four children and seven grandchildren. Ann passed away in 2001. Leland married Kaye Cummings in 2002.Some of Leland’s business accomplishments include heading up the Leonard family’s commercial real estate operation, which was recognized at one time as one of the largest commercial real estate holdings in Tarrant County. Additionally, he served as Chairman of the Board for State Reserve Life Insurance Company and Western Savings and Loan. In 1988, he started The Hodges Companies Inc., an investment holding company that was active in oil and gas and commercial real estate investments, farming and ranching, and private equity. He was still serving on the Board of Directors of PDA Corporation until death.Leland passed many important lessons on to his children: the value of a dollar, his love of the land and most importantly, his passion for helping others. Leland’s love for Fort Worth led him to give back to the city of Fort Worth to support many local non-profit organizations. He was one of the founding members of the North Texas Community Foundation, which today is a major philanthropic force in North Texas with more than $240,000,000 in assets. He once stated, “I owe a debt to the community. To me that debt means that I should be involved in community service organizations so I like to participate in any way I can.”He was a former Chairman of the following organizations: North Texas Commission, Fort Worth Club, Republic Bancshares of Texas, Baylor Scott & White – All Saints Hospital, North Texas Community Foundation and North Texas Public Broadcasting-KERA/KDTN.He was also once a member of the Board of Directors of the following organizations: Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, Boy Scouts of America, Goodwill Industries, Fort Worth YMCA, Child Guidance Center and Fort Worth Country Day School.Leland was a member of the Exchange Club of Fort Worth, Fort Worth Club, Shady Oaks Country Club, The University of Texas Silver Spurs, Beta Theta Pi fraternity, Phi Alpha Delta law fraternity, State Bar of Texas and the American Bar Association. He was also a member of Southside Church of Christ for most of his adult life.Leland had a love of wine, bird hunting, fly and bass fishing, cigars, and spending time on his various ranches. He went to his office every day, up until two weeks prior to his death.Leland was preceded in death by his wife, Margery Ann Leonard and daughter, Pamela Jane Hodges.He is survived by his wife, Kaye Cummings Hodges; his children: Pris Hodges; Leland Allen Hodges III and wife, Janet, and their children, Caroline Ann Hodges, Katherine Claire Hodges, and Genevieve Ainsworth Hodges; Margery Hodges Berry, and her children, Sam Allen Berry, Margery Ann Berry, Meredith Hay Berry and Charles Hodges Berry; Celeste Calogero and husband, Michael; and John Cummings and wife, Kory, and their children Katherine Cummings and Sarah Cummings. Special thanks to Irma Hernandez and Antonio Vasquez.