Louise Waunell Shumate

Services for Waunell Shumate, age 92 of Temple, will be held at 1:00pm Saturday, April 20, 2024 at Memorial Baptist Church in Temple with Rev. Ridge Adams officiating. Burial will be at Sanford Chapel Cemetery near Waco. The family will receive visitors from 12-1:00pm Saturday, April 20, 2024 prior to the service at the church.

Louise Waunell Shumate was born to Hershel and Nell Bruner Laney on October 28, 1931. She married her high school sweetheart, J. R. Shumate on July 18, 1948. She was saved at the age of 11 while attending a revival service at St. Vrain, N. Mex. She served the Lord by being the Sunday school secretary from age 14 until after she was married. She taught Sunday school for intermediate girls, children 2 years old through 6th grade, women 40-45 and deaf adults. She served on various committees throughout the years including missions, finance, stewardship, special nominating and personnel.

While teaching 1st grade, she heard that a deaf child would soon be in her class. Wanting to be able to communicate with him, she took an American Sign Language class. That led to her serving as director of ministries to the deaf in Clovis, N. Mex. for almost 20 years. She enjoyed interpreting for the deaf and started a class for deaf children. She taught sign language classes every year in order that others might be able to interpret for church services, Sunday school classes or wherever needed. One of the most special things that she did was attend the Southern Baptist Conference for the deaf during Home Missions week at Glorieta, N. Mex. From that she was invited to come back and teach sign language for the next 13 years.

After moving to the Waco/Temple area she again taught children in Sunday school and later became the librarian at First Baptist Woodway and then at First Baptist Temple. She helped host two library conventions and served as president of the local librarians group. Asked at one time what she wanted to be remembered as, she answered "a good wife and mother, teacher and friend but mostly remembered as a child of the King."

Waunell was preceded in death by her husband J.R., a son Ricki, a grandson Silas Martin, her parents Hershel and Nell Laney and brothers Omer Lee, Dick, Junior and Lewis.

She is survived by one brother, Robert; two sisters, Waunita Jones (Eldon) and Wanda Hand; two children, Joel Shumate (Wilna) and Barbara Gove (Gary); three grandsons, Mickey Miller, Seth Martin and Ryan Shumate; nine great grandchildren Halle, Bryden, Caiden, Kaige and Kas Martin, Reed and Rylan McClure and Carson and Cash Shumate.

She went home to be with Jesus on April 9, 2024.

In lieu of flowers, she asked that gifts be given to the mission's fund at Memorial Baptist Church.