Nacogdoches High School Alumni Association is honoring the Mast Family as its Distinguished Alumni family. The family will be introduced prior to kickoff of Friday’s Homecoming football game at Dragon Stadium.
The Mast family has lived in Nacogdoches for many years and their contributions to the community, Nacogdoches High School and Stephen F. Austin State University are well known.
Adlai T Mast Jr., son of AT Mast Sr. and Lois Watson Mast, attended schools in Nacogdoches before graduating from a private school in 1938. His sisters both graduated from NHS: Emily Mast Middlebrook, class of 1935, and Hollis Mast Barron, class of 1939.
Adlai Jr. was married to Patricia “Pat" Roberdeau of Austin. He attended SFA and UT-Austin and served with the British Royal Air Force and then the Army Air Corps during World War II, with tours of duty in both the Pacific and European theaters.
Adlai Jr. was a proud fourth generation East Texan who established the SFA Mast Arboretum. He passed away in December of 2002.
The next generation of the family that graduated from NHS includes, Dr. Adlai ‘Travis’ Mast III, Class of 1963; Patricia Mast George, Class of 1966; Horace Mast, Class of 1967; and John Mast, Class of 1972.
Horace tragically died in 1970 while a student at SFA from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident.
The Mast siblings have all gone on to contribute greatly to their communities: Travis and John here in Nacogdoches with their respective spouses, Lupe and Karen, and Tricia with her spouse Kenn in Dallas.
Tricia served for several years as Board President for the Foundation for the UT-Dallas Callier Center, and she and her husband chaired the Dallas Chapter of Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s Fund-a-Cure luncheon in 2015.
Kenn was appointed an ambassador to Uruguay in 2019 by President Donald Trump and served until 2021.
Dr. Travis Mast was a pediatrician practicing in Nacogdoches for many years. His brother John is the owner of John Mast Cattle & Timber Co. in Nacogdoches. In 2012 John refurbished the old Cason Monk building downtown, creating Mast Hall, a much-needed event center.
Also in 2012 John and his siblings established the Mast Student Investment Roundtable at SFA. Endowments created by their parents have benefited SFA academic and art scholarships, the School of Nursing, and the Mast Arboretum.
Travis’ family includes children Adlai Travis Mast IV, Helen Mast Lary, NHS Class of 1999; Sidney Mast Goodfriend, Class of 1997; and Margaret Mast Mathes, Class of 2005.
Patricia’s children are Clement George, Patrick George, Elizabeth George Gosselin and Kenneth George II. John’s children are Joseph Mast and Horace Mast II, NHS Class of 2001.
The next generation includes 13 great grandchildren and several great great grandchildren of Adlai Jr and Patricia. Several of those will be future NHS alumni.