Collision Educator Jeff Wilson Remembered for his Passion and Dedication

by Alana Quartuccio

Jeff Wilson will long be remembered as many things: passionate educator, dedicated colleague, rodeo lover, beloved father and husband.

During his 55 years, Wilson touched the lives of many, especially in the collision repair world where he devoted more than 30 years to educating students in collision repair at Humble High School and Kingwood Park High School and making friends within the industry at large. 

Tragically, the devastating Hill Country Flood this past July claimed his life and the lives of his wife and son. Wilson’s industry colleagues have called his passing a huge loss. 

“He will be terribly missed,” shares Petra “Collisionista” Schroeder of the Collision Industry Foundation (CIF). “Jeff was just a wonderful person who was very involved and passionate about everything he did.” She recalls meeting Wilson back in 2018 when another tragedy, Hurricane Harvey, struck his school district and CIF stepped in to assist. 

He stayed in touch with CIF following the hurricane devastation and attended the foundation’s event in 2020 to personally thank everyone involved, Schroeder remembers.

“He was always in his cowboy hat. The last time I saw him was at SEMA 2024. Someone that passionate about what he does just stood out. He had a welcoming personality. We waved to each other from across the room. He then came over and said, ‘Petra, I can’t just wave hello. I need to give you a hug and greet you in person.’ That’s who he was.” 

“He was a selfless individual,” reflects Michael Quinn (AirPro Diagnostics). “I was shocked and saddened when we heard of this tremendous loss. This is a loss for his extended family as well as the collision industry.” 

Like Schroeder, Quinn also began interacting with Wilson following Hurricane Harvey. 

“After Hurricane Harvey hit and CIF mobilized to help, Jeff reached out on behalf of Kingswood School. He was the lead instructor of the collision program. The school lost equipment in the subsequent flooding, and there was no budget to replace items. Many CIF board members came forward from the paint and equipment side to replace damaged items. When I spoke to Jeff about helping individuals, he said many of the students’ families were hit and indicated it would be great if we could help them.”

Quinn recalls how Wilson always put others first. 

“Over the course of a few months and many conversations and email communications, he was more concerned about the school, the students and their families than himself and his family. We encouraged him to accept our help and finally he did.”

“He was a great guy and a great teacher,” shares Chris Ryland, I-CAR chairman for the state of  Texas. “He did his best to give the kids a good background in what the collision industry truly is like. He tried to give them real world scenarios and stressed how hard we work to repair vehicles properly and according to manufacturer specifications.”

Ryland called Wilson “a great friend. We became friends when working on the Houston I-CAR committee. He was a dedicated member and worked tirelessly to help other programs in the Houston area.” 

Ryland noted his friend’s unending devotion to his family. “He was so proud of his son and the hard work he was putting forth into learning the rodeo. He definitely put his wife on a pedestal when he talked about her. You could just tell the love was there. We traveled to several conferences together and enjoyed talking about the industry and his family. He asked me to serve on the advisory board for his program, and I enjoyed those meetings with him.” 

“He had a huge heart,” recalls Adan Ibarra (Leading Edge Collision; Houston and Houston/Galveston I-CAR committee chair). “His students meant everything to him. When he sought out shops for his students to apprentice at, he’d go out of his way to make sure it would be a good fit. If he had any inclination it wasn’t, he would not send his students to those shops.” Wilson will be remembered for many things, especially his dedication to “advocating for his school and his students and for doing the right thing,” according to Ibarra. 

Wilson worked tirelessly, putting in time after hours to secure materials and grant funding from CREF to give his students the best experience possible. 

“It’s a huge loss,” Ibarra continues. “Our industry needs more instructors like Jeff who had such passion for teaching and cared about the industry, always staying on top of trends to make sure his students had the best information possible to help them succeed in this industry.” 

When news of the tragedy hit, colleagues and former students flooded social media with photos and tributes about the beloved instructor. As one former student stated, “Students loved auto collision class, but we loved you more. Yes, we learned about mechanics and paint jobs, but what we treasured most were the morals and values you poured into us.”

Want more? Check out the August 2025 issue of Texas Automotive!

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