Phyllis Marie Weiland Higginbotham

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name: you are mine." Isaiah 43:1. Phyllis, "De Da," 84, a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister and friend, passed away peacefully at her home in Baton Rougewith her family at her side on Thursday, Jan. 4, 2007. She was a native of Baton Rougeand an honored educator and member of Alpha Delta Kappa professional sorority. A student of Robert Penn Warren, she obtained bachelor's and master's degrees from LSU. Phyllis, a devout Christian, was a member of Calvary Presbyterian Church. Married for 59 years to Garber Higginbotham, her faith was expressed in her love for family and friends and the caring way that she lived her life. She is survived by a brother, William Weiland; her daughters, Beryl Marie Parsons and Diane Lee Higginbotham; a son-in-law, Bob Parsons; granddaughters and their spouses, Paige Parsons Gagliano and Louis Gagliano and Robyn Parsons Wood and Scott Wood; and her loving great-grandchildren, Bailey Christine Wax, Ethan Charles Wax and Grace Marie Gagliano. She was preceded in death by and will joyfully be reunited with her husband, William Garber Higginbotham; infant sister; brother and sister-in-law, Henry Boyd and Ida Weiland; sister-in-law Johnnie Weiland; and parents, Ella Lee Alsworth Weiland and Henry Boyd Weiland. Pallbearers, honored to be at her side, will be her grandchildren, Paige and Louis Gagliano and Robyn and Scott Wood, and her great-grandchildren, Bailey and Ethan Wax and Grace Gagliano, with whom she shared her phenomenal wit, spirit and wisdom. Visitation at Rabenhorst Funeral Home, 825 Government St., on Sunday, Jan. 7, was from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Visiting continues at the funeral home on Monday from 9 a.m. until Christian burial service at 11 a.m., officiated by the Rev. Ted Roeling. She will be laid to rest with those who loved her so dearly in Buehler Plains Cemetery Zachary.