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William Peace
William “Bill” Peace is dead. The man who traveled, hunted and fished all over the world died in a one-car accident, July 1, 2004, near Big Spring. Mr. Peace, 80, was a white-bearded outdoorsman whose full life was worthy of a literary classic. e and his wife, Bobbie, were on their way to their summer home in Santa Fe, N.M., when the accident occurred.
A light breeze blew the news across the edge of the mountains. The crows stopped their squawking; the magpies sat quietly in the spruce trees, and the ravens walked silently along the cliffs over the Chaco Ruins as the word spread. The Man is coming! This was a man who had stood by a thousand wilderness campfires and savored the glow, warmth and camaraderie. Last evening he strode unexpectedly into the glow of the last great campfire. It was guarded by the finest mountain men who ever held a Hawkins or Sharps rifles. All stood in silent admiration as the man who wore the Grizzly claw joined them. They nodded their heads in approval. Their quiet voices all spoke in unison as they said, “Welcome, Bill Peace. Welcome home.”
He was a man who loved his family and his friends more than life itself. He had the ability to break life down into such simple terms and articulate them in a way that made being around him such a pleasure. He walked here only once. He will not come this way again. We shall not see his kind any more. Truly, in the best of all worlds, he was a man for all seasons.
William Stuart Peace was born on Sept. 22, 1923 in LaGrange to J.R. and Lillie Ellen Stack Peace. He spent the majority of his early life in the rice farming community of East Bernard where his father owned a furniture factory. Mr. Peace was attending Southwest Texas State Teachers College and was the solo trumpet player in the band at the outbreak of World War II. Along with many others of his generation, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1942 and was shipped to California for training. Shortly before he was to be sent to the South Pacific, he was assigned to a radar school in Bryan. Before leaving for Bryan he was exposed to spinal meningitis while on duty guarding a quarantine area. While enroute, he contracted the deadly disease. The train was stopped, and he was left for dead at an Army base in Clovis, N.M. Thirty days later, he awoke from a coma to find the raging fever had burned all the hair from his body and left him deaf. It was the major turning point in his life.
He was sent home to recover his health and soon thereafter enrolled in college at the Texas School for the Deaf and the University of Texas at Austin where he continued to play trumpet in the band. It was through this determination that he learned to read lips so that he could continue his life with a degree of normalcy. After a year at UT he returned to Southwest Texas State Teachers College where he met Bobbie who would be his wife and companion for the next 57 years. After graduating from SWTSTC, he returned to East Bernard to join his father in the furniture manufacturing business. He was active in that business until it was sold in the mid-1960s and was able to pursue his life-long passion of collecting Sharps rifles, hunting and fishing. By the end of the 1960s, he owned the finest collection of Sharps Rifles in the USA and was known around the country as “Mr. Sharps.”
Mr. Peace never met a stranger. It seemed his deafness created in him a unique ability to get close to his family and friends. He was a man of immense strength and character. He always wanted to know about folks and what made them tick. He would stop his truck along a busy highway in order to visit with someone he thought looked interesting or sit on the curb for a moment to speak to a little child. His friendliness radiated from him. He had a wonderful ability to reduce the meaning of life into simple English.
He and his wife Bobbie (Barbara Lee Vanderford) were married for 57 years and from this union were born three children: Son, John and wife Linda from Katy; daughter, Susan and husband Kenny Holley from Killeen; and son, William (Bill) and wife Ann from Austin; nine grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
There was a memorial service at the Umlauf Sculpture Gardens in Austin on Tuesday, July 6, at 6 p.m. It was a time for stories of a gifted life.
The family requests that in lieu of flowers memorials can be made to the Disabled American Veterans, The Texas School for the Deaf or The Coastal Conservation Assoication.
Anastazie Stasney
Funeral services for Anastazie Stasney, 73, of Beasley, were held Friday at Guardian Angel Church in Wallis with Rev. Richard Johnston officiating. Burial followed in Guardian Angel Cemetery near Wallis.
Mrs. Stasney died June 29, 2004, in Houston. She was born in Wallis to the late Frank and Amalie Hanzelka Chalupa.
She was reared in the Tavener area and attended Orchard School. Mrs. Stasney held many jobs in her working career, teller in a bank, owner operator of Alan’s restaurant in East Bernard and was a farmer for the past 24 years.
Survivors include her husband George Stasney; son, Alan Stasney and wife Lisa of Beasley; sisters, Bessie Polasek and husband Jerry, and Dolores Chalupa of Bay City; brothers, Ed Chalupa and wife Bea of Frydek, and Robert and wife Janet; and three grandchildren. She was preceded In death by her parents; brothers, John Chalupa, Frank Chalupa and an infant twin brother.
Caroline Kemp
Caroline Anna Martha Kemp, age 80, of Boling, died Friday, April 30, 2004, in a Houston hospital. She was born on May 26, 1923, in Rosenberg, the daughter of the late Fred Galler and Lena Wendland Galler.
Mrs. Kemp was reared in Fort Bend County and moved to Wharton in 1939. She was employed as a welder in Houston during World War II, helping build the Liberty Ships. Mrs. Kemp married Archie Melburn “Hank” Kemp on Dec. 29, 1945, in Rosenberg. He preceded her in death on Oct. 11, 1989. She moved to Boling in 1945 and started working for the U.S. Post Office in Boling. Mrs. Kemp retired in the mid 1980s as Postmaster. She was a member of the Boling First United Methodist Church and was very active in its womens’ organization.
Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. today, Wednesday, May 5, 2004, at the Wharton Funeral Home with Rev. Paul Thomasson officiating. Interment will follow in Evergreen Memorial Park Cemetery.
Survivors include her sons, Larry D. Kemp and wife, Jane, of Georgetown, Carl “Duke” Kemp and wife, Jane, of Mandeville, La., and Ronald R. Kemp and wife, Gail, of Richland, Wash.; sister, Lydia Looper of Wharton; brothers, George Galler of Bastrop, La., and Clarence “Buddy” Galler of Winnie; grandchildren, Larry Kemp Jr., Shannon Stone, Kristine Muntan, Zachary Kemp, Charlotte Norton, Rhonda Contreas and Ronnie Kemp; and 11 great-grandchildren.
Pallbearers are Lyle Burns, Bud Horelica, Jimmie Sims, Alvin Rolf, Steve Munoz, and Marvin Galler.
Honorary pallbearers are Kit Sims and Faghan Looper.
If desiring, memorials may be made to the Salvation Army, P.O. Box 2608, Dallas, TX 75221.
Maggie Little
Graveside funeral services for Maggie Adelle Little, 98, of Wharton, were held Sunday at Wharton City Cemetery with Rev. Orville Roberts officiating.
Mrs. Little died April 30, 2004, in Wharton. She was born on Oct. 26, 1905, in Burnet County, the daughter of the late George F. Cromeans and Margaret Newlin Cromeans.
She was a 76-year resident of Wharton and was Baptist by faith. Mrs. Little attended schools in San Saba, Burnet and Wharton counties. She married James Henry Little on Jan. 25, 1928, in Wharton. He preceded her in death Oct. 18, 1985. She was also preceded in death by six sisters and one brother. Mrs. Little was a homemaker and helped her husband for many years with their farm.
Survivors include five nieces and two nephews.
If desiring, memorials may be made to the Wharton EMS, 2010 N. Fulton, Wharton, TX 77488.
Maria Tijerina
Funeral services for Maria E. Tijerina, 84, of Wharton, were held Monday at Wharton Funeral Home with Rev. Frank Hernandez and Rev. Israel Tellez officiating. Burial followed in Evergreen Memorial Park Cemetery. A prayer service was held Sunday at the chapel of Wharton Funeral Home
Mrs. Tijerina died April 29, 2004, in a Wharton hospital following a brief illness. She was born on Oct. 31, 1919, in Corsicana, the daughter of the late Matilde Estrada and Augustina Pinales Estrada.
She had been a resident of Wharton since 1960 and was a member of the Centro De Adoracion Church in Wharton. Mrs. Tijerina married Alberto A. Tijerina on Sept. 12, 1937, in Wharton and he preceded her in death on March 2, 1985. She was also preceded in death by three daughters, two sisters and two brothers.
Survivors include her daughters, Lidia T. Harris of Richmond, Anita Hernandez of Wharton, Maria Elia Arriaga of Boling, Elizabeth Rodriguez of Wharton, Olga Cuevas of Angleton, Rebecca Marin and Herlinda Tijerina, both of Bay City; sons, Marcos Tijerina Sr. and Albert Tijerina Jr. both of Wharton, Eliseo Tijerina of Torrance, Calif., Jose Tijerina of Wharton and Arthur Tijerina of Dallas; sisters, Rachel Ortiz and Rosa Rodriguez, both of Corpus Christi; 31 grandchildren and 38 great-grandchildren.
In lieu of usual remembrances the family requests memorials to the Centro De Adoracion Church, 607 Harrison Lane, Wharton, TX 77488.
Sarah Jacobs
Sarah “Sally” Jane Jacobs, 95, of Glen Flora and formerly of Speaks, passed away on July 20, 2004, in Wharton. She was born on Oct. 9. 1908, in Armagh, Northern Ireland, to the late Samuel and Sarah McGuire Smith.
As an Irish “war bride,” she fell in love with Henry Jacobs, a Texan who was serving his country during World 'War II. Mrs. Jacobs chose to become his wife, bear his child and travel to a foreign land where she had no family or friends. She left everyone and everything she knew behind.
Mrs. Jacobs was a longtime resident of the Speaks community and active member of Speaks Baptist Church where she taught Sunday School. She held numerous offices with the church and the Speaks Cemetery. Mrs. Jacobs also wrote the “Speaks News” for the Hallettsville newspaper. Following the death of her husband in 1979, she moved to Glen Flora and lived with her daughter, Mary, for 20 years. She became a member of First Baptist Church in Wharton and sang with the Joybell Singers.
She was a wonderful wife, mother, grandmother and friend. Mrs. Jacobs was a kind, thoughtful and caring person who always put her family first. She had a wonderful laugh, sense of humor and will be missed by all who knew her.
Mrs. Jacobs is survived by her daughters, Patty Jensen and husband Curtis of Danevang and Mary Fink and husband Walter of Glen Flora; grandchildren, Carl H. Jensen and wife, Tanya, Brian H. Jensen and wife, Stephanie, Chad Fink and wife, Ginger, and Heidi Fink; great-grandchildren, Chase Fink, Bethani Fink, Jacob Jensen, Julia Jensen and Jackson Jensen .
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Henry Jacobs; sister, Mary Moore; and brothers, Sam, Arthur and Hugh Smith.
Visitation will begin at 8 a.m. on Thursday. The family will receive friends on Thursday from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday at Triska Funeral Home in El Campo with Dr. Donnie Melton officiating. Interment will be at the Speaks Cemetery.
Pallbearers are Carl H. Jensen, Brian H. Jensen, Chad E. Fink, Jerl Koonce, Joe Moore and Billy Joe Nolen.
Honorary Pallbearers are Heidi Fink, Dr. John Wissinger, Frances Fee, Robert Brown, Deborah St. Clair, Lori Buzek, Deborah Cook and employees of Garden Villa Nursing Home.
Mary White
Mary Anna Wright White, 62, passed in the Lord’s care on Wednesday, July 14, 2004. She was born Feb. 11, 1942, in Houston to Robert D. and Mary Jean Wright and was reared in Wharton.
Mrs. White graduated from the University of St. Thomas and was employed by STOA/Golemon/Bolullo, Architects since 1997. She was a member of Houston Theresians of Agape. Mrs. White had a strong faith in God and was active in the Wednesday night Bible study group at Holy Ghost Catholic Church. She was a loving and caring woman who always put her family and friends first. Mrs. White was preceded in death by her parents and her sister, Anita Street.
She is survived by her husband of 38 years, Joseph P. White; sons, F. Patrick White and wife Terri, Peter S. White, and Philip C. White; grandchildren, Connor and Carly White; sister, Jean Suchecki; brothers, Robert D. Wright Jr. and Roger L. Wright; aunt, Katherine Collins; and numerous nieces, nephews, and other loving relatives.
The family received friends from 6 to 9 p.m. Monday, July 19, 2004, at Earthman Bellaire Chapel in Bellaire with a vigil service that began at 7 p.m. The funeral mass was celebrated 11 a.m. Tuesday, July 20, 2004, at Holy Ghost Catholic Church in Houston with Rev. Gregory May presiding. The rite of committal will be held 11 a.m. today, Wednesday, July 21, 2004, at Evergreen Memorial Park Cemetery in Wharton with Rev. Raymond Jackson, officiating.
Mrs. White’s nephews will serve as pallbearers.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to World Vision Child Sponsorship in the name of Mary Anna White, Account No. 54178892. Please send to World Vision, P.O. Box 78481 Tacoma, WA 98481.
Bud Campbell
Funeral services for Ewell L. “Bud” Campbell, of Boling, are pending at Wharton Funeral Home.
Mr. Campbell died Sept. 17, 2004.
Creola Edwards
Funeral services for Creola LaRose Edwards, 85, of Houston, will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday at Sand Ridge Baptist Church with Rev. A.C. Gardner officiating. Burial will follow in Sand Ridge Cemetery. Visitation will be from 6 to 9 p.m. today, Friday, at Gooden-Hatton Funeral Home.
Mrs. Edwards died Sept. 15, 2004, at Methodist Hospital in Houston. She was born Sept. 13, 1919, in Wharton to George and Mattie Bluntson Hawkins.
She worked as a cook and was Baptist by faith.
Survivors include her husband, David of Houston; daughter, Mattie Brown Matthews of Egypt; sister, Eunice Williams of Eagle Lake, brothers, Odell Lott of Altair and Roosevelt Hearn of Eagle Lake; six grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.
Contact Gooden-Hatton Funeral Home.
Edna Klein
Funeral services for Edna Ella Mikus Klein, 90, of Victoria and formerly of Wharton, were held Monday at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church with Rev. Celestino Say officiating. Burial followed in Resurrection Cemetery.
Mrs. Klein died Sept. 9, 2004. She was born Feb. 23, 1914, in Yoakum.
She was a teacher for VISD from 1953 to 1979 serving all together for 41 years throughout Texas. Mrs. Klein was member of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, Catholic Daughters, Altar Society and Retired Teacher Association.
Survivors include, her husband of 59 years, Willie Jim Klein of Victoria; daughter, Linda Bollman and husband C.H. of Nursery; four grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents, Robert and Mary Hajek Mikus; sister, Hattie Chilek; brothers, Robert Mikus and Dr. F.F. Mikus.
If desiring, memorials may be made to masses for the church or Nazareth Academy.
Thomas Mills
Funeral services for Thomas Alon Mills, 69, of Houston, will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, at Wharton Funeral Home with Rev. Don Hurley officiating. Burial will follow in Evergreen Memorial Park Cemetery.
Mr. Mills died Sept. 15, 2004, in Houston following an extended illness. He was born on June 10, 1935, in Refugio, the son of the late Will Tom Mills and Minnie Ola Price Mills.
He graduated from Wharton High School in 1953 and graduated from Wharton County Junior College. Mr. Mills married Nettie Helfer on Dec. 31, 1955, in Wharton. He was a longtime resident of Houston and worked for the U.S. Postal Service prior to retiring in 1994. He was a member of Elks Lodge No. 151.
Survivors include his wife, Nettie Mills of Houston; daughters and sons-in-law, Sheryl Lee and Joe Keyworth of Pearland and Joanna and Rex Baldwin of Pearland; son and daughter-in-law, Thomas Ray and Darla Mills of Spring; sister, Jean Ann Wilkins of Alvin; and seven grandchildren.
If desiring, memorials may be made to Cal Farley’s Boys Ranch, P.O. Box 1890, Amarillo, TX 79174-0001.
