Roger Kolar

Roger Kolar, 79, passed away on May 21, 2023 from cancer.

A joint memorial for Patty and Roger will be held on Friday, June 9th at 6:30pm at St. Austin Catholic Parish 2026 Guadalupe St, Austin, Texas 78705. A graveside service will be held on Saturday June 10th at 11:00 a.m. at St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery, 1678 Cemetery Road, West, Texas 76691.

He was born on February 20, 1944 to Hattie (Matus) and Henry Kolar and raised in West, Texas. It was in his first grade classroom in West where he met Patricia (Patty) Kolar, his wife of nearly 56 years. Roger loved and cared for Patty throughout her long battle with Parkinson's disease. Tragically, and romantically, their diseases progressed side by side in the last year and Patty passed away 3 days prior to Roger's death.

Roger attended SMU earning a degree in Interior Design. Upon graduation, Roger joined the Air Force as an Officer through ROTC. He served in Rapid City, South Dakota, Alexandria, Louisiana, and in Vietnam at the Tan Son Nhut Air Base in Saigon. While in Saigon, Roger was wounded and earned a Purple Heart. He also received a Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service while in Vietnam.

After leaving the Air Force in 1970, Roger and Patty moved to Austin, where Roger earned a Bachelor of Architecture then a Master of Architecture from the University of Texas. Roger was managing partner at several architecture partnerships until his retirement in 2013 from Negrete and Kolar Architects. As a proud Czech, a highlight of his career was designing the Main Center building for the Texas Czech Heritage and Cultural Center in La Grange, Texas.

Roger and Patty were longtime members of the University Catholic Center where they taught first grade Sunday school for many years. They were also members of St. Austin's Catholic Parish, and Emmaus Catholic Church in Lakeway and were both passionate about supporting organizations devoted to bettering the world and caring for those in need.

Roger loved to cook and enjoyed hosting annual Christmas feasts for family and friends. Travel was a large source of pleasure for Roger and Patty, and they made many trips to Europe, Mexico, and Asia over the years. He was a talented artist; his artwork now fills his children's homes. He loved a good puzzle, keeping up the yard, attending classical musical performances, and maintaining the family home. Roger could build and fix anything and had an undeniable style and good humor that made for a warm and welcoming home for any that visited. He was a constant source of knowledge and support to his children and grandchildren.

He was immensely proud of his five children, Susan (Bill) Bohn, Stephen (Margaret) Kolar, Emily (Sara) Kolar, Anthony Kolar, and John (Jaclyn) Kolar. He was an engaged and involved parent, serving as coach, PTA president, and fan for all of his kids at their sports events, shows, and programs. For the last 15 years he took great joy in being Granddad to his 7 grandchildren, Brice, Brooks, Izzy, Alex, Miles, Miklas, and Olina.

In addition to his children and grandchildren, Roger is survived by his siblings Geraldine (Ervin) Laubert, and David (Rebecca) Kolar and their families.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to www.powerforparkinsons.org, an organization that provided a wonderful community to Roger during his many years as caregiver for Patty.