The daughter of Dr. Harry and Nevada Gordon, Virginia (better known as Gennie) was raised in Atlanta, Georgia, and graduated from the Girls High School. She attended college at Agnes Scott in Decatur, Georgia.
In 1946, at the age of 18, she met and fell in love with her husband, Oswald (better known as “Ozzie”), while he was securing credits toward his Masters Degree at Georgia Tech.
Gennie had a wonderfully unique personality and disposition. She was warm, empathetic, and genuinely fond of people. Gennie never made a negative comment about anything, but only spoke positively and put a smile on people’s faces. She was highly intelligent and quick-witted. In school, she skipped the fifth grade and was offered to skip a grade in High School. Her teachers made the comment that she was the finest creative writer they had ever seen in a student.
Gennie was a devout Christian and believed that all people are God’s children.
Her hobbies included writing, playing piano, and singing. She was also an avid golfer who often played with her husband, Ozzie, at Champions Golf Club and courses around the world. Ozzie was a scratch golfer, but she had the bragging rights to a hole in one.
Gennie also loved to travel. She and Ozzie traveled the globe with his company, Continental Oil, and took family vacations to beautiful places around the country, her favorite spot being Mauna Kea, Hawaii.
Active in the community, Gennie was a Trustee of the Houston Ballet and on the Board of Directors of the Houston Grand Opera. She also supported the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, the Museum of Natural History, the Heritage Society and various charities.
Gennie was preceded in death by her parents, Dr. Harry and Nevada Gordon, and her daughter and son-in-law, Mary and Gary Becker. She is survived by her beloved husband of 63 years, Oswald; her son and daughter-in-law, Bo and Sheila Newell and grandson, Aron; daughter and son-in-law, Genny and John McIntyre, and grandchildren, Madi and Mason; and daughter and son-in-law, Debbie and Jim Bidock.
The family expresses special thanks to her wonderful caregivers Lucy Graves, Carlotta Henderson, and Karen Adams, who eased and comforted her in her final years.
Friends are cordially invited to a visitation with the family from five o'clock in the afternoon until seven o'clock in the evening on Thursday, the 10th of November, in the Parlor of Geo. H. Lewis & Sons, 1010 Bering Drive in Houston.
A memorial service is to be conducted at two o'clock in the afternoon on Friday, the 11th of November, in the Chapel of Chapelwood United Methodist Church, 11140 Greenbay Street, where the Rev. Dr. Scott Endress is to officiate.
Immediately following, all are invited to greet the family during a reception in the adjacent Parlor.
Prior to the service, the family will have gathered for a private entombment at Memorial Oaks Mausoleum in Houston.
In lieu of customary remembrances, the family requests with gratitude that memorial contributions in Gennie’s name be directed to the Alzheimer’s Association of Houston, 2242 W. Holcombe Blvd., Houston, TX, 77030-2008; or to the American Heart Association - SW Affiliate, Attn: Memorials, P.O. Box 841125, Dallas, Texas 75284-1125.
Gennie lived her life around her husband and children. She was Ozzie’s heart and the love of his life. She was the best mother and grandmother in the world. We will all miss her, and we love her more than life itself.
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