Mitzi was born in New Orleans to Clara Mae Lucas and Arthur E. Wallace where she and her siblings, Rosalie, Sally, Irene, and A.J. Wallace grew to adulthood. In 1945, she and Claude, a U.S. Navy veteran of WW II, married in St. Cecilia Catholic Church. In 1954, they moved to Chalmette, Louisiana, where they raised their five children and built a life together full of family and friends around almost every corner for the next fifty years. They were devoted members of the St. Bernard Parish community, as well as Our Lady of Prompt Succor Catholic Church.
Their welcoming home was always open to unexpected visitors and the neighborhood children. While raising her family, Mitzi worked intermittently for the U.S. Credit Union and volunteered in Louisiana's Adult Literacy Program, an educational project she took very seriously. She also worked at the Catholic Center for Jesus the Lord assisting in feeding and sheltering the homeless.
After Claude's 2003 death, she remained in St. Bernard Parish. Undaunted by the loss of her family residence in Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Mitzi returned to the devastated site with a dream of fashioning a bungalow from the garage that survived the catastrophe. With the help of her grandson Erik, she succeeded and enjoyed every inch of her cozy little Fenelon Street home. Mitzi loved adventure, summers at the camp on Lake Pontchartrain, the beloved “Log Cabin” in Covington, family gatherings full of good food and lots of laughter, a cold beer and just to have fun.
Mitzi is survived by her children, Caryn Cossé Bell (Dennis) of New Orleans; Steven Anthony Cossé (Andrée) of New Orleans; Clay Anthony Cossé (Marie) of Arabi, La.; Amy Cossé Webster (Ronnie) of Covington, La.; and Ann Cossé Swigart (Stan) of Seabrook, Tx. Mitzi is also survived by her thirteen grandchildren, Kelli, Marnie, Nicole, Kurt, Clay, Stephanie, Katie, Erik, Kacey, Evan, Emily, Julia, and Kate, as well as twenty-four great-grandchildren.
The family wishes to express its profound gratitude to Passages Hospice of Covington and the staff of St. Anthony's Memory Care.
Visitation will be held at Our Lady of Prompt Succor Catholic Church, 2320 Paris Rd., Chalmette, LA on Saturday, September 3, 2022 at 10:00 AM with a Funeral Mass to begin at noon. Burial will follow at St. Bernard Memorial Gardens where Mitzi will be interred beside her beloved husband, Claude.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Our Lady of Prompt Succor Catholic Church, 2320 Paris Rd., Chalmette, LA 70043 in memory of Mitzi.
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