Mehaffey
A memorial service for Pauline Griffith Mehaffey, 87, of Rockdale will be held Saturday, Oct. 18, 2008, at St. John’s Methodist Church. A picnic will follow at Veteran’s Park.
Visitation will be at 9:30 a.m. at the St. John’s fellowship hall.
Mrs. Mehaffey died Thursday, Oct. 9, at her home in the company of her daughters and caregivers.
She was born May 7, 1921, in Palestine to Karl Cook Griffith and Mattie Mae Carr Griffith.
Mrs. Mehaffey grew up and went to school in Palestine and there she met Linwood Mehaffey, a recently-arrived fledgling entrepreneur.
When he enlisted in the U.S. Army and was sent to New Mexico, Mrs. Mehaffey went there too. She worked for the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Weather Bureau.
They were married on March 14, 1943, in Palestine.
A business opportunity brought them to Rockdale in 1948 and Rockdale became their lifelong home.
Mrs. Mehaffey was preceded in death by her parents; a brother, K.C. (Jack) Griffith and wife Eutha of Palestine; and Linwood and his siblings, Margaret Mehaffey Roddy and husband Roy of Dallas, Robert Mehaffey and wife Dell of Breckenridge.
Survivors are two daughters, Peggy Perry and husband Collier of Rockdale, Nancy Said and husband Nabil of Atlanta, Georgia; four grandchildren, Dell Perry of Atlanta, Lin Perry and wife Diana of Rockdale, Tut Said and David Said of Atlanta; two great-grandchildren, Jackson and Elizabeth Perry of Rockdale; her primary caregiver, Cataline Pizana; three Griffith brothers, Robert and wife Maxine of Eagle Lake, Kenneth and wife Rita of Grapevine, Tom and wife Sally of Palestine; a sister, Katie Wilson and husband Ed of Palestine; and a brother-in-law, Dick Mehaffey and wife JoAnn of Nashville, Tennessee; also, numerous nieces, nephews and their extended families.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. John’s United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 168, Rockdale, TX 76567; VistaCare Hospice Foundation, 2626-B S. 37th St., Temple, TX 76504; Lucy Hill Patterson Memorial Library, 201 Ackerman, Rockdale, TX 76567; the scholarship funds of Thursday Reading Club or Linwood Acres Garden Club, c/o Peggy Perry, P.O. Box 1048, Rockdale, TX 76567; or other charity of choice.

Bland
Services for Nolan J. Bland, 88, of Rockdale were held Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2008, at Phillips & Luckey Funeral Home in Rockdale with Rev. Doug Springer of Rockdale Full Gospel Church officiating. Burial was in I.O.O.F. Cemetery.
Mr. Bland died Sunday, Oct. 12, at Scott & White Hospital in Temple.
A lifelong Rockdale resident, he was born Sept. 15, 1920, in Rockdale to Les Alfred and Dewey Inez (Blackmon) Bland.
He married Leona Louise Gest on March 7, 1942, in Rockdale.
Mr. Bland was a product tester in Alcoa’s Rockdale Operations Atomizer.
He was a member of First Christian Church in Rockdale and enjoyed woodworking.
Mr. Bland was a World War II veteran, serving in the U.S. Army 636th Tank Destroyer Battalion.
He was preceded in death by four brothers, Homer D., Leon, Harry and R.V. Bland; and four sisters, Blanche Bland, Annie May Bland and infant twin sisters.
Survivors are his wife, Leona Bland of Rockdale; two sons, Nolan J. Bland Jr. and wife Carrie of Brazoria, James S. Bland and wife Toni of Bryan; a brother, S.C. Bland and wife Vermel of Rockdale; a sister, Alice Faye Farris and husband Richard of Tyler; a brother-in-law, Walter Gest and wife Delores of Rockdale; and four sisters-in-law, Katie Jackson and husband Robert, Beth Gest and Hilda McVoy, all of Rockdale, and Corina Scruggs and husband Bobby of Taylor; also, eight grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.
Pallbearers were Terry Jackson, Bill Bland, Shannon Strickland, Randy Thomas, Cory Thomas and Mike Jackson.
Memorials may be made to American Heart Association, P.O. Box 15186, Austin, TX 78761.

Brown
Services for Rubye Ellen Brown, 83, of Rockdale were held Monday, Oct. 13, 2008, at Forest Grove Christian Church near Rockdale with Rev. Andrew Pandolfi of Thousand Oaks Christian Church in San Antonio officiating. Burial was in Forest Grove Cemetery.
Mrs. Brown died Friday, Oct. 10, at Manor Oaks Nursing Center.
A lifelong Rockdale resident, she was born Feb. 21, 1925, in Forest Grove to Henry Clarence Spence and Carrie (Kyle) Spence.
She married Elbert Brown on Sept. 21, 1946, in Georgetown.
Mrs. Brown was an RN nurse at Richards Memorial Hospital, retiring after 47 years of service.
She was a member of Forest Grove Christian Church.
Mrs. Brown was preceded in death by her parents.
Survivors are her husband, Elbert Brown of Rockdale; a son, Bert Brown and wife Joan of San Antonio; two grandchildren, Dr. James E. Brown and wife Jennifer, Tara Brown Pandolfi and husband Rev. Andrew Pandolfi; two great-grandchildren, Bailey Brynn Pandolfi and Andrew Kaleb Pandolfi; three brothers, Kyle Spence of Giddings, Claude Spence and Rodney Spence, both of Rockdale; and a sister, Roxy Ann Bingham of Austin.
Pallbearers were Hollins Spence, Lange Spence, Gary Spence, Glen Spence, Robert Bingham and Billy Light.
Memorials may be made to Forest Grove Cemetery Association, c/o Trina Edwards, P.O. Box 463, Lexington, TX 78947.

Ford
Services for Ben Ford, 94, of Milano were held Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2008, at Phillips & Luckey Funeral Home in Rockdale with Rev. Calvin Springer and Rev. John Warren of St. John’s United Methodist Church officiating. Burial followed in Milano Cemetery.
Mr. Ford died Friday, Oct. 10, at his residence.
A lifelong Milam County resident, he was born April 7, 1914, in Milano to E.H. and Jessie (Fisher) Ford.
He married Myrtle Burgess on Nov. 9, 1935, in Rockdale.
Mr. Ford was a potroom tender for Alcoa, as well as a long-time farmer and rancher.
His property was recognized by Family Land Heritage, through the Texas Department of Agriculture, for a century or more of continuous ownership and operation as a family agricultural enterprise. He was presented a certificate of honor by the State of Texas in ceremonies in Austin in January 1999.
Mr. Ford was a member of St. John’s United Methodist Church, was a founding member of Rockdale Federal Credit Union and was a member of United Steelworkers Local 4895.
He was preceded in death by his parents; a son, Roy Wayne Ford, in 2001; two infants; two sisters, Jessie Summers and Mollie Young; and a brother, Henry Ford.
Survivors are his wife of 73 years, Myrtle Ford of Milano; a son, Denson Ford of Rockdale; a daughter, Nancy Willis of Rockdale; six grandchildren, Alan Finch of Austin, Traci Sholtis and husband Jon of Buda, Dwayne Ford of Reno, Nevada, Paul Ford of Rockdale, Melissa Martin of Rockdale and Kevin Ford of Taylor; and four great-grandchildren, Brandon and Megan Sholtis, Kayla Morgan and Heather Ford.
Pallbearers were Finus Black, Billy Hall, John Shoemake, Jeremy Sholtis, Jon Sholtis and Jonothan Sholtis.
Memorials may be made to Alzheimer’s Association, Box 8462, Chicago, IL 60680-8462 or American Cancer Society, Box 1630, Rockdale, TX 76567.

Longmire
Graveside services for Mary Lou Cunningham Longmire, 94, of Palestine were held Saturday, Oct. 11, 2008, at Oak Lawn Cemetery in Rockdale.
Mrs. Longmire died Thursday, Oct. 9, in Palestine Health Care Hospital.
A Palestine resident since 1986, she was formerly of Houston and was born July 30, 1914, in Comanche to Richard Aaron and Annie Lou (Carisle) Cunningham.
Mrs. Longmire was an LVN with Memorial Hospital in Houston, retiring in 1986 with over 50 years of service.
She was a member of the Baptist Church and enjoyed animals, crocheting, reading, crafts and caring for others.
Mrs. Longmire was preceded in death by her parents and two sisters, Bonnie Mae Caloway and Kathleen “Kat” Phelps.
Survivors are a son, Lowell K. and wife Rhoda (Reagan) Longmire of Palestine; and two granddaughters, Rhonda Longmire Thomas of Palestine and Mona Longmire Stevens of Tomball; also, seven great-grandchildren, 11 great-great-grandchildren and a number of nieces and nephews.

Lyles
Graveside services for Ben Lyles, 77, of Rosharon were held Friday, Oct. 10, 2008, at Oak Lawn Cemetery in Rockdale with Rev. Jimmy Haile of Black Jack Baptist Church officiating.
Mr. Lyles died Tuesday, Oct. 7, at his home in Rosharon, where he lived for 26 years.
He was born April 3, 1931, in Lexington to James Ollie Lyles and Dora A. (Norman) Lyles.
He married Barbara Sue Wilson on Sept. 10, 1975, in Las Vegas.
Mr. Lyles made and sold jewelry to schools, then sold to Balfour and became their supervisor. He then worked in electronic manufacturing for 20 years.
He was preceded in death by a son, Jerry Lyles, on May 1, 2008; three brothers, Alfred, Oscar and Arvil Lyles; and his parents.
Survivors are his wife, Barbara Sue Wilson Onken Lyles of Rosharon; a son, Billy Lyles of Salem, Oregon; two stepsons, Darren Onken of Rosharon and Terry Onken of Dayton; a stepdaughter, Lisa Porter of Dublin; and a sister, Lila Mills of Houston; also, 10 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
Memorials may be made to Helping Hands & Hearts Hospice, 412 Plantation Dr., Lake Jackson, TX 77566.

Peck
CAMERON—Billy Eugene “Bill” Peck, 82, of Cameron died Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2008, at his home.
Memorial services will be held at a later date.
Mr. Peck was born Aug. 4, 1926, in Cameron to Earl Isaac and Evelyn Iona (Eddins) Peck.
He was a C.H. Yoe High School graduate and served in the U.S. Navy.
Mr. Peck worked in the U.S. Postal Service for more than 35 years and he was a member of First Presbyterian Church in Cameron.
He married Melissa Anastasides on Dec. 4, 1980.
Mr. Peck was preceded in death by his first wife, Lillie Mae Peck, in 1971, and by his son, Mike Peck, in 2005.
Survivors include his wife, Melissa Peck of Cameron; two daughters, Melissa (Missy) Boyer and husband Mark of Cameron, Kimberly Benson and husband Robert of Bonaire, Georgia; a sister, Lois P. Gray of Cameron; a daughter-in-law, Kim Peck of Temple; and three grandchildren, Blake “Bag of Bones” Vanier, Tanner “Tan-Man” Graves and Nicholas “Cottontop” Benson.

Matula
CAMERON—Funeral services for Edna Richter Matula, 88, of Cameron were held Friday, Oct. 10, 2008, at Marek-Burns-Laywell Funeral Home in Cameron with Rev. Walter Matus officiating. Burial followed in St. Monica’s Cemetery.
Rosary was recited on Thursday, Oct. 9, at the funeral home.
Mrs. Matula died Wednesday, Oct. 8, in a Cameron nursing facility.
A lifelong Cameron resident, she was born Oct. 31, 1919, in Cameron to Frank and Frances (Loberger) Richter.
She married L.J. Matula on June 3, 1941, and he preceded her in death in 1969.
Mrs. Matula worked as a nurse at St. Edwards Hospital in Cameron for many years.
She was a member of St. Monica’s Catholic Church, St. Monica’s Ladies Society and the VFW Ladies Auxiliary.
She was also preceded in death by a son, L.J. Matula Jr.
Survivors include a daughter, Pat Barrett and husband Griffin of Cameron; a sister, Dorothy McLaughlin of The Woodlands; a grandson, Aaron Barrett and wife Romana of Austin; and a great-grandchild, Reese Barrett.

Clemens
CAMERON—Graveside services for Barbara Dell Clemens, 69, of Cameron were held Friday, Oct. 10, 2008, at Birdston Cemetery in Streetman with Davin Schulz officiating.
Mrs. Clemens died Tuesday, Oct. 7, in a Cameron hospital.
She was born Aug. 5, 1939, to John and Lessie (Schilling) Keel.
She married Michael Clemens on June 2, 1989.
Mrs. Clemens had worked in home health care.
Survivors include her husband, Michael Clemens of Cameron; a son, Grady Butler of Kosse; a daughter, Kristi Baron of Milano; a brother, Glenn Keel of Waco; and a sister, Eloise Smith of Idaho; also, four grandchildren.

Obituaries are printed in The Rockdale Reporter as a free public service. The information is provided by the funeral home. More detailed obituaries may be printed for a fee. Call 512-446-5838 for more information.