Nancy RuDean Edwards

RuDean attended Bonham Elementary School, Lincoln Junior High School, and was a graduate of Abilene High School in Abilene, Texas. She enrolled in McMurry College in Abilene and attended for one semester before meeting her first husband, James Robert South. RuDean was married to Bob at the age of 19 on September 30, 1967. Bob and RuDean had two children, James Brian and John Christian South in Abilene, Texas. Bob and RuDean divorced in 1975.

RuDean moved with her children to Austin, Texas for a new start and began working for a mortgage company. Through her work with the company, she met James Anthony Edwards who owned a real estate company. Tony kept bringing all his clients to RuDean at the mortgage company. Eventually, she left the mortgage company and began working as a secretary for Wilkinson-Edwards Real Estate Associates. Her relationship with Tony continued to grow and they were married on July 16, 1977. Tony had a daughter, Dawn Renee that he brought with him to the relationship. She stated that Tony got two boys out of the arrangement, and she got the little girl she always wanted. Tony and RuDean were life partners and remained married for 42 years until his death on January 11, 2020.

Early in her career, RuDean worked for W.E. & Associates and the business grew to employ 27 agents working out of two locations in Austin. Around 1986, Tony and RuDean decided to scale back their business and consolidated work down to two real estate holding companies. In 1996, they put an office in their home, liquidated their partnership holdings and continued working in real estate with Edwards Associates until they retired in 2015. RuDean said at one time that her career never changed because she was married to it.

While working with Tony and raising a family, RuDean emphasized the importance of a good education. She tried to lead by example and took college courses throughout her career, but there never seemed to be time to finish her degree. In the meantime, all three of her children graduated from college and they have each demonstrated the mindset of a “lifetime of learning.” After the last of her children left home for college, she began to refocus on her own education in earnest. She enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin and began to work on a degree in psychology. Eventually, she changed her major to elementary education and earned her bachelor’s degree in August 1998 at almost 50 years of age. She was a member of Kappa Delta Pi, an international honor society in the field of education; Golden Key National Honor Society, and graduated with honors. The personal accomplishment she felt after finishing her degree was one of the highlights of her life.

Tony and RuDean retired and began living at their house on Lake Buchanan in Burnet, Texas. They enjoyed their new freedom by visiting with friends, old and new. Tony loved to fish and cook barbecue and RuDean was a phenomenal cook in her own right. She baked and shared great recipes with friends and family members and always cooked great meals when hosting friends and family in her home. When the lake home became too much work to maintain, they moved to a new home in Marble Falls, Texas. It was the perfect setting for Tony, RuDean, and the three dogs. Once again, they made new friends and cherished the friendships they made along the way. RuDean took care of Tony until he passed away in January 2020. Due to his advanced Alzheimer’s disease, she never told him that she had been diagnosed with Stage 4 ovarian cancer because she didn’t want him to worry about her.

RuDean passed away peacefully on the morning of August 30, 2021.

She is survived by her son Brian South and his wife Julie, her son Chris South and his wife Stephanie, her stepdaughter Dawn Braley and her husband Terry, her two grandsons Sutton and Conner, and numerous nieces and nephews.

“When tomorrow starts without me, don’t think we’re far apart, for every time you think of me, I’m right there in your heart.”

In lieu of flowers, RuDean requested any gifts or contributions be directed to the American Cancer Society at https://donate3.cancer.org/