James
Leland Ohlhausen, 72, of Abilene, passed away Friday, December 3rd, 2010 at a
local care center. A service is scheduled for 2:00 pm Monday, December 6th, 2010
at Minter Lane Church of Christ with a burial to follow at Elmwood Memorial
Park. Visitation with the family will be held Sunday from 3-5 pm at Piersall
Benton Funeral Directors, 733 Butternut St.
Leland
was born August 12, 1938 in Abilene to Lester and Dorothy Ohlhausen. Their
family moved to Ballinger when Leland was just two years old. He graduated from
Ballinger High School in 1957. After graduation Leland returned to Abilene to
attend Abilene Christian College, where he majored in mass communications and
worked as a disc jockey at the KACC radio station. After leaving college, he
worked in radio for a few years before moving to the then-new field of
television. Leland was a pioneer of Abilene television. In the course of his
career, he worked as an engineer for all three local television stations and
was the chief engineer for KTAB and KTXS. He met Gale Green in 1962 while she
was a student at ACC and they were married October 27, 1963. They moved to
Abilene shortly thereafter and raised their four children there.
Leland
was a member of Minter Lane Church of Christ, where he served as a deacon for
over 40 years. He was an active amateur radio operator for many years. He also
enjoyed camping, boating, and model railroading.
Surviving
Leland are his wife, Gale Green Ohlhausen of Abilene; two sons, Tony Ohlhausen
of Albuquerque (and wife Robin) and Gaylan Ohlhausen of Abilene; two daughters,
LaNelle Ohlhausen of Fort Worth and Kristina Cooke of Abilene; one sister,
Norma Hadley of Cleburne (and husband Shultz). In addition, he is survived by
his beloved grandchildren Aaron, Alissa, Micah, Isabelle, and Isaac, as well as
several extended family members and many close friends.
He
was preceded in death by his parents and by a son, John Lowell Ohlhausen.
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ABILENE, Texas -- We lost a member of the KTXS family Friday morning. Leland Ohlhausen died of colon cancer.
For years, Leland Ohlhausen was our go-to guy. The man who knew all the ins and outs of the electronics that make Abilene television appear in your home. He began his career in 1962.
"I took my little script and went down to San Angelo, to Channel 8 and I was gonna be an announcer because that's what I'd done in college...was the DJ type and they said, "we'll call you" so, they never called, so I figured engineering might be the place I need to be."
As a pioneer of Abilene television, Leland spent time at all three local stations. He guided us through the era of black and white...right up to the digital age. His work, of course, was behind the scenes. He wasn't a face you saw on-air every day, but without Leland's guidance, those faces and voices wouldn't have shown up at all.
In fact, even while off the clock, he always seemed to be on the job. "I was sitting there enjoying the movie and they went from a dark scene to a snow scene and I jumped up to pull the gain down, and I took just a little while to realize that, no, I'm in a movie house, not at the TV station."
In 2006, Leland took his private battle with colon cancer public. He told viewers his story of putting off medical screening that could have saved his life. The rest of his life, Leland urged others to get that colonoscopy that can detect cancer early. "If there's one person that goes and gets checked because of what I went through, then maybe it's worthwhile."
Leland Ohlhausen was 72.
For years, Leland Ohlhausen was our go-to guy. The man who knew all the ins and outs of the electronics that make Abilene television appear in your home. He began his career in 1962.
"I took my little script and went down to San Angelo, to Channel 8 and I was gonna be an announcer because that's what I'd done in college...was the DJ type and they said, "we'll call you" so, they never called, so I figured engineering might be the place I need to be."
As a pioneer of Abilene television, Leland spent time at all three local stations. He guided us through the era of black and white...right up to the digital age. His work, of course, was behind the scenes. He wasn't a face you saw on-air every day, but without Leland's guidance, those faces and voices wouldn't have shown up at all.
In fact, even while off the clock, he always seemed to be on the job. "I was sitting there enjoying the movie and they went from a dark scene to a snow scene and I jumped up to pull the gain down, and I took just a little while to realize that, no, I'm in a movie house, not at the TV station."
In 2006, Leland took his private battle with colon cancer public. He told viewers his story of putting off medical screening that could have saved his life. The rest of his life, Leland urged others to get that colonoscopy that can detect cancer early. "If there's one person that goes and gets checked because of what I went through, then maybe it's worthwhile."
Leland Ohlhausen was 72.
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Will you be that "one person" Leland saves?
Peace and Love,
Marilyn
Thanks for the lovely post on the 1957 website concerning Leland. I had no idea what happened to Leland after high school. He was such a quiet person that you would tend to overlook him when anything was going on. How ironic that he went into radio and television and was so highly successful in those fields.
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