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Ramey ‘Lou’ Elam
MONAHANS — Lou passed away Sunday, Oct. 19, 2003, at her residence in Monahans, Texas. Lou graduated from Monahans High School in 1953, where she was a cheerleader and a member of the MHS volleyball team. She married
Curtis Elam on Aug. 1, 1953, who preceded her in death by one week. Lou loved her family greatly.
She is survived by three sons, Rob of Midland, Randy of San Antonio and Royce of Odessa; five grandchildren, Ryan, Lucas, Jessica, Curt and Andee; two great-grandchildren, Riley and Chloe; and three brothers, Ronald Ellis of Coppell, Texas, Logan Ellis of Alameda, Calif., and Nolan Ellis of Castro Valley, Calif.
She will be greatly missed by her family and friends. Lou was a longtime member of the 3rd and Dwight Church of Christ in Monahans. She was a very kind and gracious woman.
Services will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2003, at the 3rd and Dwight Church of Christ with Greg Holly officiating. Burial will follow in the Monahans Memorial cemetery.
Services are entrusted to Heritage Funeral Home of Monahans.
Charlene Crook Clay Root
DALLAS — Charlene Crook Clay Root of Dallas, an Odessa resident from 1951 to 1970, died Sunday, Oct. 19, 2003. She was 82.
While living in Odessa, she was a member of Trinity Baptist Church and later Belmont Baptist Church, where she served as church secretary for 10 years. Since 1997, she was an active member and Sunday School teacher at Shiloh Terrace Baptist Church of Dallas, where she sang in the senior choir.
Her life was spent serving her Lord in teaching Sunday School classes at Baptist churches where she was an active member from 1944 until July 2003. She also enjoyed hobbies and pastimes that included piecing quilts, playing golf and tennis, and traveling the world with her second husband.
Charlene was born July 4, 1921. She graduated from Okemah High School in Oklahoma in 1939 and married
Curtis Lee Clay that year. She married
Dain Root in 1989. She was preceded in death by her first husband of 46 years and her second husband of eight years; a 3-year-old son, Jimmy Dale Clay; and two sisters and a brother.
She is survived by five children, Johnny Lee Clay of Midland, Gerald Wayne Clay of Grapevine, Susan Beth Warren of Stephenville Jane Noordam of Richardson and Martha Ann Curtis of Little Rock, Ark. She is also survived by a sister, 10 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
In 1970, Charlene and husband Curtis relocated from Odessa to Dallas. She worked for the Baptist General Convention of Texas for 15 years, retiring in 1985, when she and Curtis moved back to Okemah. He died in 1986. After remarrying in 1989, she lived in Okemah and was an active member and Sunday School teacher at First Baptist Church, and a member of the Okemah Golf Club and Okemah Quilt Club. She was a quilter at the Okemah Senior Citizen Center.
After her second husband’s death, Charlene returned to Dallas in 1999 and lived in Buckner Retirement Village until August 2003, when she became ill.
Services will be at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 22, at First Baptist Church in Okemah. Burial will be in Highland cemetery at Okemah. Visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Parks Bros. Funeral Home.
The family asks that memorial contributions be made to the Okemah Senior Citizen Center, 116 S. Third St., Okemah, OK 74859, or to Wayland Baptist University, 1900 W. 7th St., Plainview, TX 79072, a college attended by four of her children and to which she left a bequest.
Evelyn E. ‘Nanny’ Kelley
ODESSA — Evelyn E. “Nanny” Kelley passed away Sunday, Oct. 19, 2003, at her residence. She was born Nov. 17, 1926, to John R. and Ava Rilla Davis in Belmont, La. She married
James M. Kelley on Aug. 5, 1945, in Natchitoches, La., and they moved to Odessa in 1949. She was a member of the First Baptist Church.
Evelyn was an endowed member of the Order of the Eastern Star and was a Past Matron. She worked at Sherwood Baptist Church daycare prior to being secretary/bookkeeper of Kelley’s Tool Works for several years. Evelyn was a loving wife, mother and “Nanny” as well as a wonderful friend to many.
Evelyn was preceded in death by her parents and two brothers.
She is survived by her husband, James, and three sons, Rodney and wife, Patricia, of Springfield, Mo., John M. and wife, Shirley Jo, of Odessa and Jeffery L. and wife, Karen, of Flower Mound; seven grandchildren, Kris Kelley and wife, Jana, Michelle Kelley, Brett Prewitt and wife, Shelly, ZoAnna Foley, Heather Thomas and husband, Larry, John Acton and wife, Michelle, and Tasha Kelley and companion, Phillip Peeples; 15 great-grandchildren, two great-great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.
Special thanks to all the staff of Odyssey Healthcare, friend, Dorothy Cook and sister-in-law Sharon Kelley.
Memorials may be made, in lieu of flowers, to Odyssey Healthcare.
Family visitation will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2003, at Frank W. Wilson Funeral Directors.
Services will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2003, at First Baptist Church. Interment will follow at Sunset Memorial Gardens.
Services entrusted to Frank W. Wilson Funeral Directors.
Jesus O. Mancha Sr.
ODESSA — Jesus O. Mancha Sr., 76, of Odessa passed away Sunday, Oct. 19, 2003, at Medical Center Hospital.
Mr. Mancha was born May 16, 1927, in Presidio, Texas, to Aristeo Sr. and Petra O. Mancha. He married
Jovita Garcia Oct. 11, 1953, in Monahans, Texas, and to this unification were born six children. Jesus was a very devoted Catholic, in his early years he was president of the Holy Name Society and made his crusillo and was an usher at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. He was a very loving family man; he loved his wife, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews very much.
Dad enjoyed spending time with everyone on family gatherings. He enjoyed watching and supporting his grandkids playing different types of sports. He was the type of person that he would help everyone. His favorite hobbies were watching boxing with his family, going to Vegas and he was also a Dallas Cowboy fan. He retired as an operator with General Tire and Rubber Co.
Daddy we love you and you will be dearly missed.
He was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers, Manuel and Jose Mancha, and great-granddaughter, Ajacia Mancha. He is survived by his wife, Jovita G. Mancha; three sons, Delfino Mancha and wife, Lupe, Jesus O Mancha Jr. and wife, MaryAnn, and Joaquin “Jackie” Mancha and wife, Norma; three daughters, Leonarda “Judy” Mancha, Georgia Gamez and husband, John, and Rosie Bermea and husband, Manuel, all of Odessa; three brothers, Guadalupe Mancha Sr. and wife, Maria, of Odessa, Ramon Mancha of Presidio and Aristeo Mancha Jr. and wife, Lydia of Alpine, Texas; sister-in-law, Guadalupe D. Mancha of Odessa; and a special friend, ex-daughter-in-law, Joann Mancha of St. Paul, Minn.; 24 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
A rosary will be recited at 7 p.m. today, Oct. 21, 2003, at Odessa Funeral Home Chapel. Mass will be celebrated at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2003, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church with Reverend Gilbert Rodriguez officiating. Burial will follow at Rosehill cemetery.
Services by Odessa Funeral Home.
Nelle Olivia Waters Lovett
ODESSA — Nelle Olivia Waters Lovett died Friday, Oct. 17, 2003, at Hospice House in Odessa, at age 89. She was born March 22, 1914, in Marietta, Love County, Okla., to David Elam Waters and Nancy Caroline Bartlett, the fifth of eleven children and the first girl.
Shortly after her birth, her family returned to Texas, where her father was in the dairy cattle and oil business and ultimately opened the first dairy west of Fort Worth to pasteurize milk, in Cisco, Texas. Her mother was an artist, art teacher and worked with the extension service supervising art teachers in community colleges around the area.
Nelle was a Presbyterian and was baptized at age 12 when an Itinerating Missionary came to town with water brought from the Jordan River in Israel. She attended school in Cisco and graduated at age 16 from Cisco High School. She attended Cisco Junior College, Randolph Junior College, the University of Texas at Austin, Texas Woman’s University, and later did graduate work at Texas Tech University.
Nelle Waters met George Dare Lovett, Sr. in East Texas and they were married
in Austin, July 3, 1937. Mr. Lovett was in the oil business and they moved to Illinois and Indiana during the oil boom there. While in Indiana, their two children were born, George Dare Lovett Jr. and Nancy Elizabeth Lovett.
In 1942, they returned to Texas, where she taught school while Mr. Lovett worked with the Corps of Engineers in Central America building the Pan American Highway. After his return and after World War II, the family lived in various locations and finally settled in Odessa in 1947.
During the next 15 years, they worked as church builders in the Presbyterian Church and were charter members of Westminster Presbyterian (then Normandy Heights and St. Paul Presbyterian. Nelle taught Sunday School and played the piano for services for several years. She loved the church and lived the true Christian Life.
Nelle Lovett viewed education as the one most important issue in the lives of her family and those around her. She taught all levels from kindergarten through High School, but found her true calling teaching children with learning disabilities. She was sure that there had to be a way to reach students who were usually classified as “lazy” or “wouldn’t pay attention.”
She worked with Dr. Charles Lambeth in the 1960s and studied brain research as it related to learning. She traveled to Denver, Colo., where she met with members of the faculty of the University of Colorado who were doing clinical research in learning disabilities. She was given unpublished materials along with permission to use it in whatever way she needed to find a solution in her classes.
She did graduate work at Texas Tech University and was certified in Special Education with a specialization in Learning Disabilities. She furnished materials to one professor who used them to design a class she needed for her certification. She was the first teacher certified in Learning Disabilities and began teaching in that capacity at Hood Junior High. She had a great influence on the many students who passed through her classroom, most of whom found that they were, indeed, bright, able learners. She transferred to Crockett Junior High where she ended her career in l975 when she took early retirement to care for Mr. Lovett who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.
Following her retirement, she and a few others met and founded the first Alzheimer’s Support Group in West Texas. She published the newsletter for several years and found that her brain research for education gave her many insights into the behaviors of victims of Alzheimer’s as the disease progressed.
She was able to give him dignity and love in a way that made his last years easier. Nelle Lovett was also a dedicated member of Al-Anon. The family became members of Alcoholics Anonymous and Al-Anon in 1964. The Twelve Step program of A.A. was a healing power in her family and she spent hundreds of hours carrying the message to others who needed to know that the process of recovery could be a reality. Even during times of illness and following the death of her husband, when she was not able to attend meetings, she spent countless hours talking to people on the phone carrying the message. There were many times when they brought people into their home during holiday seasons to help them get through the difficult times.
Nelle Lovett was a rather quiet woman who cast a very tall shadow among her friends and associates. She was much loved by students, family, friends and those who knew her even casually. She is sorely missed.
She was predeceased by her parents, her husband, George Lovett in 1982, one sister, Elizabeth Julia Waters Howard, and nine brothers: Fleming Aiken Waters, Albert Bartlett Waters, Royce Everett Waters, David Elam Waters, Theodore Edwin Waters, Marien Allen Waters, James Hayes Waters, John Francis Waters and William Eugene Waters.
She is survived by her children, George Dare Lovett Jr. of Strawn, Texas, Nancy E. Lovett of Odessa; one grandson, George Dare Lovett III and wife, Laura; two great-grandsons, George Dare Lovett IV and Houston Jake Dare Lovett, of Houston; two sisters-in-law, June Waters, of Granbury, Louise Waters of Irving; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
Services will be at St. Andrew Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 1415 N. Grandview, at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2003. She will be buried at Sunset Memorial Gardens in the Garden of Prayer near the monument of the Praying Hands. Visitation will be from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the funeral home.
The family wishes to thank the staff of the Sienna Care Center and Hospice House of Odessa for their loving care of Nelle during her last few weeks on this earth.
Memorials may be made to St. Andrew Cumberland Presbyterian Church, Hospice of Odessa, the Alzheimer’s Association of Odessa, or the charity of choice.
Services entrusted to Sunset Funeral Home in Odessa, Texas.
Gladys E. Foster
ODESSA — Gladys E. Foster, 84 years of age, passed away on Friday Oct. 17, 2003, at Seabury Nursing Center.
She was born on May 8, 1919, in Omaha, Texas, to Benjamin and Mary Ledbetter. She married
Freeman F. Foster on June 22, 1940, in Clovis, N.M.; he passed away in 1995. She was preceded in death by her parents; sisters, Opal and Golder Ledbetter and Zelma Simkins; brother, William Marion “Buddy” Ledbetter; and grandchildren, Becky Sue Bryson and Foster Lynn Struck.
Surviving are daughters, Marilyn E. Feemster of Odessa, Sue Struck of Odessa, Sandra Kay Newell of Lubbock, Betty Ann Mayes of Zephyr and Jeanie Struck of Odessa; sister, Georgia Lee Gibson of Dallas; sisters-in-law, Beulah Huckabee of Odessa, Estell Price of Hamilton, and Maida Walker of Amarillo; 12 grandchildren, Rhonda, Michael, Twala, Cindy, Crista, Carrie, Brad, Bryan, Lisa, Stephanie, Amy and Craig; and 31 great-grandchildren.
Visitation will be today until 9 p.m. at Odessa Funeral Home. Funeral services have been set for 10 a.m. Monday, Oct. 20, 2003, at Odessa Funeral Home Chapel with Dr. Jimmy Braswell officiating.
Graveside services will be at 4 p.m. at the Lubbock City cemetery.
Services by Odessa Funeral Home.
Floyd Hare
WYLIE — Floyd Hare, 82, passed away Thursday, Oct. 16, 2003, at Hospice House in Odessa.
Services were held at 3 p.m. (MDT) Saturday, Oct. 18, 2003, in Elida, M.M., with Travis Case officiating. Arrangements by Wheeler Mortuary in Portales, N.M.
Floyd was born June 28, 1921, in Throckmorton, Texas, to Austin and Lula Bell Hare. He married
Verna Thurman in Elida, N.M., in 1940. He was a self-employeed trim contractor and lived in Odessa 17 years before moving to Wylie, Texas, in 1971. He was a member of the Baptist Church.
Surivors include his wife of 63 years; son, Charles R. Hare and wife Vivian of Royse City; daughters, Velta Case and husband Travis of Irving and Elaine Martin and husband A.P. of Odessa; nine grandchildren; 15 great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandson; brother, Hershell Hare of Amarillo; and sisters, Maxine Thurman of Truth or Consequences, N.M., and Billie Schucker of Mesa, Ariz.
Memorials may be made to the Hospice House, 903 N. Sam Houston Ave., Odessa, TX 79761.
The family would like to express our very deepest gratitude to the nurses and workers at Hospice House for the wonderful care given our loved one.
