Herbert Barry Pike

Herbert Barry Pike was born August 27, 1938 in Newark, New Jersey to parents, Morris Pike and Lillian Kravitz Pike. He was raised in West Orange, New Jersey, in a large, close-knit family of Russian Jewish immigrants. Herb was steeped in the rich culture of First Generation Americans. His elder relatives spoke Russian, Hebrew, Yiddish and English with varying fluency. They enjoyed celebrating holidays and life events together, with traditional Eastern European foods and humor. 

A friendly, outgoing young man, he played high school football at West Orange High. Herb's first job was with the family business - Pike Electric - electrical contractors. Herbert served our country in the US Army for four years, after which he earned his Associates Degree in the burgeoning field of Electronics. He was proud to have maintained and repaired Minuteman Missiles in South Dakota during the Cold War.

His ebullient nature and inquisitive spirit led him to Southern California in the early 60s, lured by the idyllic culture of beach surfing. Herb met his beloved wife, Joyce, herself a recent immigrant from the United Kingdom, and they courted in La Jolla and San Diego, California. When they decided to make a life together, they drove across the country, back to his family in New Jersey to get married and raise their children in the Jewish faith. 

Herb took a job as a salesman for banking & security equipment giant, Mosler. His gregarious and affable nature propelled him to great success in his field and allowed him to provide generously for his family. He and Joyce raised three children as they moved around Northeastern U.S. and, ultimately to Houston, Texas in the mid-70s. The Jewish community in Northwest Houston was sparse at the time, and he helped to found Congregation Jewish Community North in the middle of a predominantly Christian area. Serving rotationally as ad hoc, lay rabbi, community organizer and sonorous congregational singer over the years, he ensured that his children were brought up to be civic and service-minded Reform Jews of integrity. Always ready with a story or joke, Herb was everyone's friend, a warm and inclusive member of the community.

Herbert Barry Pike passed away February 16, 2024 in Webster, Texas at the age of 85. He was preceded in death by his parents, Morris and Lillian Pike; and brother, Ira Pike. Herbert is survived by his beloved wife of 57 years, Joyce Pike; daughters, Michele Anne Pike and Dana Jill Pike; son, Craig Russell Pike and his wife Suzy Pike; grandchildren, Ashley Thourot, Scott Thourot, Maximillian Carlson, and Benjamin Carlson; great-grandchildren, Emily Deluna, Brody Thourot, Amory "Bubba" Thourot, Ari Deluna, Kaylea Thourot, and Evie Deluna.