Effie Theresa Clark, RN, passed away August 7, 2011, at the age of 96. She was born Effie Theresa Fontenot in Ville Platte, Louisiana on October 6, 1914, one of nine children. After graduating from Ville Platte High School, she boarded a bus to Galveston, TX, to attend St. Mary’s School of Nursing, where she graduated with an RN Degree. While working as a registered nurse at St. Mary’s Hospital in Galveston, she met her future husband, Vernon “Lefty” Clark. They married in August 1938. Lefty was a well-known and well liked barber in Galveston. Their first daughter was born in 1940. A son, who tragically died at the age of one week, was born in 1945. Their second daughter was born in 1948. The Clarks made their home in Galveston for many years.
Effie worked in St. Mary’s Hospital, doctor’s offices, and John Sealy Hospital before becoming a company nurse at American National Insurance Company. After several years, Effie became a school nurse for the Galveston Independent School District. She worked at several schools, including Weiss Middle School, Rosenberg Elementary School, and Burnet Elementary School until her retirement.
She and Lefty moved to Lake Bonanza near Lake Conroe where they were members of Montgomery United Methodist Church. Effie volunteered at Conroe Regional Medical Center Gift Shop, worked as a school nurse for the Montgomery Schools for a short time, taught quilting, and made porcelain dolls. After Lefty’s death in 1986, she remained in Lake Bonanza for several years. She then moved to The Terrace in Houston, where she lived for eight years. When her health began to fail, she moved to Ainsley Courte Assisted Living in Cypress.
Effie is survived by two daughters: Theresa and her husband Don Boldman of La Porte and Cindy and her husband Andy Tuzinkiewicz of Cypress. Six grandchildren: Julie and her husband Mickey Lawson of Little Elm, Ann Swift of Sugarland, Susan and her husband Kevin Clark of Pearland, Sally Boldman of La Porte, Drew and his wife Sarah Clark of Houston, and Ashley and her husband Marquis Phillips of Houston. Twelve great grandchildren: Lianna and Shelby Lawson, Lauren and Ryan Swift, Cameron and Chloe Clark, Alyssa Schmidt, Madilyn Ryzewski, Kai and Karis Clark, and P.J. and Aiden Phillips. She is also survived by two sisters: Bertha White of Downey, California and Betty and her husband Minuse Hebert of Pineville, Louisiana, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
Viewing will be held at Brookside Funeral Home, 9149 Highway 6 North, Houston, from 5pm to 8pm on . Wednesday, August 10, with graveside services at 11:00 am on Thursday, August 11 at South Park Cemetery, 1310 North Main St., Pearland.
The family would like to thank Effie’s caregivers, Robin Rice Munoz and Christa Jernigan and their assistant Yessica Hernandez for their loving care and compassion. We would also like to express our appreciation to the nurses and employees at Sunset Hospice for their kindness and consideration of our loved one.
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