Daniel Texeira (Tex) was a loving and caring family man and friend. Born to Antone and Rose in a blue-collar Portuguese neighborhood New Bedford, MA in 1939, his childhood was rife with stories of causing trouble alongside his three older brothers Tony, Al, and Sylvester. After high school, Dan enlisted in the Navy and was proud veteran who served with his oldest brother, Tony on the tender USS Grand Canyon (AD-28).

After his 3 years, 10 months and 22 days in the Navy, Tex spent the next 48 years as an employee of Hamilton Standard/United Technologies Corporation in Windsor Locks, CT as a welder on environmental heat exchangers for military and commercial aircraft. He was a renowned and meticulous craftsman—so skilled, that his company sent him to work on the Space Shuttle program. He often entertained us with a story of attempting to take a heat shield tile as a memento, only to be detained by security and forced to return it. Tex had a larger-than-life personality. He was a friend to all at Hamilton Standard, and his welding booth became a place of gathering—much to the frustration of the many shop foremen he tormented over the years with his practical jokes, rebelliousness, and stubbornness. A proud union member, he made sure everyone knew it, especially the corporate elite.

His fearlessness was legendary. Once, on a side job welding a safety net support on the edge of Boston's 50-story John Hancock Building, a coworker pointed out that Dan wasn't harnessed in. Unphased, Tex simply clipped in and kept working. His family heard this story every time that building was in view on visits to Boston. Dan was also a strong supporter of community theater. Dan served as the President of the former Agawam Repertory Theater. He also acted in several productions, including one role as a woman! His craftsmanship skills were also on display in many of sets used in the productions.

Upon retirement, he found joy working in his barn, tinkering with endless projects, exercising in his self-made gym, and parking cars while making new friends during the Eastern States Exposition. He was also a regular at the White Hut restaurant in West Springfield, where he could never resist lending a hand behind the counter when needed. He was a motorcycle enthusiast who loved NASCAR racing and treated the Daytona 500 as a national holiday.

Tex leaves behind his wife of 45 years, Shelby; his stepchildren, Jeff (and Amy) Woods of Champaign, IL, and Samantha Woods (and Lanny Day) of Hull, MA; and his grandchildren, Jack and Mary Woods, and Max Day. Godspeed, GranDan. Go cause mischief with your brothers.

Dan will be interred at the Massachusetts Veteran's Memorial Cemetery in Agawam.