Brenda M. Nichols

In an old English churchyard there is this inscription, “Who plucked that flower?” cried the gardener as he walked through the garden. His fellow servant answered, “The Master,” and the gardener held his peace.

Tuesday, August 16, 2022, the Master plucked a beautiful flower, Brenda Magruder Nichols of Houston, Texas.

Brenda Magruder Nichols was born in Indianola, MS to the late Bernice Magruder White and Tommy Pam. She was the second of five children. One brother preceded her in death, Kenneth Ray White.

Brenda was reared among strong ties in a Christian home, and professed her faith in Jesus Christ at a very early age. She was baptized at Mount Beulah M.B. Church in the Sunflower River under the patronage of Rev. J.M. Kimble and later converted to Catholicism at St. Benedict the Moor Catholic Church in Indianola under Father Walter (Meinrad) Smigiel. When she relocated to Houston, TX, she was a faithful member of Brentwood Baptist Church until the sun set on her life.

She graduated from Gentry High School in 1965. During the summer of 1965, Brenda became involved in the civil rights movement in Sunflower County, MS working as a teacher’s aide with Mrs. Cora Flemming, the Director for the first Head Start Program, in Indianola.

Brenda enrolled at Jackson State University (JSU) in Jackson, MS, in the fall of 1965. While she was a student, Brenda worked in the library. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Jackson State University as an “A” student. Brenda continued further studies and received a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from Texas Southern University.

Mrs. Nichols started her career as a social worker in Chicago, Illinois. She later relocated to Houston, TX in 1980 and enrolled in the alternative teacher certification program. She was employed as a kindergarten teacher at the Houston Independent School District and Fort Bend Independent School District where she retired in 2012. Mrs. Nichols excelled in her profession and had a distinguished career as a teacher. As a dedicated teacher, she influenced the lives of many young people. Mrs. Nichols devoted her life to teaching and serving others. She had a kind heart and spirit for her students and others.

She enjoyed gardening, reading, watching educational programs and spending time with her family.

Mrs. Nichols was united in Holy Matrimony to Emmett Nichols, while she was a student at Jackson State University, and to this union was born one loving son, Barick Emmett Nichols. She and Emmett divorced several years later.

She leaves to cherish her memory one son, Barick Nichols (Desire Nichols), Houston, TX; three sisters, Erie Magruder Jackson, Chicago, IL; Stacy J. White, Indianola, MS; and Marsha J. White, Indianola, MS.; one granddaughter, Alicia Nichols, Las Vegas, NV; one niece, Amber Magruder, Brooklyn, NY; a step father, Dorsey M. White, Jr. (Eleanor White), Indianola, MS, two aunts, one uncle, and a host of cousins and other relatives and close friends

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A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, August 27, 2022 at 11 AM at Brentwood Baptist Church, 13033 Landmark Street, Houston, TX 77045. Interment will follow at Forest Park Westheimer Cemetery, 12800 Westheimer Road, Houston, TX 77077.