Willette Jerden

Mattie Willette (Newman) Jerden went to be with the Lord on Sunday morning, December 10, 2017, less than a month from her 96th birthday. “Nana” passed away at the St. Catherine’s Hospice Care Unit in Waco.

Willette was born on January 9, 1922, in a farmhouse near Floresville, Texas, the daughter of Joseph Albert and Dodie Newman. The family moved to Hunt when she was 10. She graduated with the last class of Hunt High School in 1938, and played both volleyball and basketball for the Eagles.

Willette attended Texas State College for Women (now TWU) and received her elementary teaching certificate after two years. She then taught in one-room schoolhouses in the Hill Country and was the last school teacher at Camp Verde, site of the Army’s famous “Camel Experiment.” When she left, the Camp Verde school closed.

Willette married Julius Rex Jerden of Pine Mills, Texas, on October 3, 1941, after a two-and-a-half month courtship, and followed her Army/Air Force husband to a dozen different bases during his 30-year military career. World War II began just two months after their wedding in San Antonio, and they were off to Waco, Garden City, Kan., and Nebraska for the next couple of years. Then, when Rex went to Guam with the B-29s, Willette and their son, Larry, returned to Kerrville for the duration.

After the war, the family lived in Tucson, Ariz., where daughter Lana was born, then back to Kerrville while Rex was in Korea, then to Fort Worth; Little Rock; Ashiya and Itazuke, Japan; Smyrna, Tenn.; Sumter, S.C., and finally, Bergstrom AFB in Austin.

There, they settled down for 41 years and made good friends at Windsor Park and Hyde Park Baptist churches. They attended Glorieta Baptist Conference Center for 14 years in a row and played “42” on Friday nights. After her husband of 66 years died, Willette moved back to Waco to be near her daughter, Lana, and lived at Lakeshore Estates almost 10 years. There, she became a beloved resident and continued her “game playing” with Mexican Train and dime bingo.

Willette was an Avon representative for four decades in Austin, making many friends in the process. As a church librarian, she loved sharing the joy of reading with both young and old parishioners. Willette did substitute teaching while living in Arkansas and Tennessee. She was also an Honorary Life Member of the Austin A&M Mothers’ Club.

Gardening was a life-long pleasure, and she often remarked that she put in a long series of lawns and gardens that were enjoyed by others—after she and her family were transferred to the next base. After her husband’s retirement in Austin, however, she was able to finally develop her gardens, where she won “Yard to the Month.”

She and Rex were active in First Southern Baptist Church, Tucson, River Oaks Baptist Church, Fort Worth; First Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Ark.; First Baptist Church, Smyrna, Tenn.; Grace Baptist Church, Sumter, S.C., and Windsor Park and Hyde Park Baptist Churches in Austin, as well as Air Force chapels in Japan.

Her husband predated Willette in death in 2007. She is also predeceased by her three brothers, Ellis, Kenneth and Don Newman. She is survived by her son, Larry Jerden and wife, Gayle, of Rowlett; daughter Lana Catalina of Waco; five grandchildren: Shelby Jerden and wife, Julie, of Houston; David Maddox and his wife, Shawn, of Dallas; Robyn Lux of Houston; Laurie Cain and husband, Jeff, of Sachse; Paul Catalina of Waco, and Laura Catalina Lilley and her husband Brandon, also of Waco. She also was blessed with 11 great-grandchildren: Christopher, Simon and Alexander Jerden; Owen and Olivia Lux; Allison and Natalie Cain; Luke and Leo Catalina, Angelina and Hana Lilley.

There will be a visitation at 1:00 p.m. Monday, December 18, 2017, at Hyde Park Baptist Church, 3901 Speedway, Austin, TX 78751, with the funeral following at 2:00 p.m. The interment will follow at Cook-Walden/Memorial Hill Cemetery, North Interstate 35, Austin, TX 78660.

Memorial gifts may be made to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame or the Texas Baptist Children’s Home. You may give to either of Willette’s beloved organizations online at tbch.org (Texas Baptist Children’s Home) or tshof.org/support/give (Texas Sports Hall of Fame). Use their forms to note that your gift is a memorial to Willette Jerden. You may also mail a check to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, 1108 S. University Parks Dr., Waco, TX 76706, Attn: Jay Black