Mary Ann Wooten

A beloved Mother, Wife, Grandmother and Great Grandmother, Camella (Mary Ann) Wooten, age 93, was born on September 5, 1927, in Houston, Texas. Mary Ann left this temporary life, and entered into her eternal heavenly home on August 4, 2021, which was the birth date of her father, John Grizzaffi. Her faith, ever strong…we delight knowing she is in the arms of our Lord.

Mary Ann graduated from Sam Houston High School in 1946, where she was Lieutenant of Drums in the Drum and Bugle Corp. She met her husband to be in 1948 at a dance. They had both gone with other dates, but they ended up dancing all night together. I’m sure they were popular with their dates after that night, but it was meant to be. They danced every night for six weeks straight, and they danced their way to the altar on September 25, 1949. Mary Ann was a charter member of Saint Ambrose Catholic Church and served in the Altar Society. She was also a member of Catholic Daughters. While she was a stay-at-home mom in her earlier years, she volunteered many hours for her church. And you could always hear her in the stands at us kids’ ball games, giving the referees or umpires a good booing and chewing. She dearly loved sports and she rarely missed an Astros or Texans game on TV. In 1983, she joined the team of Home Interiors as a displayer, doing home shows to help ladies decorate their homes. She dearly loved her work and ordering all the new items in the catalogs. She excelled in this, winning top sales for many years. She was with Home Interiors for 35 years. During that time, she and her husband, Andy, opened A.W. Enterprise Used Car and Truck Sales in Houston, in which she was very involved, keeping the books and writing contracts. At about age 51, she joined the Third Age Learning Center in the Heights, where she joined a Hula and a Ukulele group. These groups performed all around the Houston area for Nursing and Assisted Living Homes, for private parties and for Baylor College of Medicine. Doing the Hula took Mary Ann back to dancing, something she had always loved. She did this for 19 years, and the song “Tiny Bubbles” will always trigger those memories for us.

Mary Ann is preceded in death by her husband of 66 years, Andy P. Wooten, her son, Craig Anthony Wooten, granddaughter Misty Nicole Wooten, by her parents, John Grizzaffi and Lena Palermo Grizzaffi, and siblings Janie SanFelipe and husband Joe, Pauline Bowen and husband Mike, Luke Grizzaffi, Johnny Grizzaffi and wife Lucille.

Mary Ann leaves behind her daughter, Linda Robinson and husband Larry, her sons Andy John Wooten and wife Susan, and Terry Wooten and wife Margaret. She leaves behind her grandchildren, Larry, Lorie, Lauren and Tim, Christina and Scott, Danielle and Scott, Mackenzie and Les, Andy John Jr. and Ashley, Greg and Flor, Aaron, Caila and Malcolm, and Craig, Jr., and numerous great grandchildren.

“We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.” II Corinthians 5

Visitation will be held 5:00 to 8:00pm, at Pat H. Foley Funeral Home, 1200 W. 34th St., Houston, TX, with a Rosary to be recited at 6:30pm. The Mass of Christian Burial will be 11:30am at St. Ambrose Catholic Church, 4213 Mangum, Houston, TX. Rite of Committal will follow at Earthman Resthaven Cemetery at 13102 North Fwy, Houston, TX. A meal will follow back at Pat Foley Funeral Home. All are welcome.