Edna Deckard

Services for Edna Deckard, 98, of Gainesville are set for 2 p.m. Wednesday at St. Mary’s Catholic Church with Rev. Pat Murphy, O.S.A., officiating. Burial will follow in North Dexter Cemetery under the direction of the Geo. J. Carroll & Son Funeral Home of Gainesville.

Mrs. Deckard died Feb. 11, 2008, at Renaissance Care Center.

Edna was born to Nora and John Wankan in 1909 at Haskell, Texas. She was the only survivor of premature triplets and is now the only survivor of twelve Wankan children.

On August 1, 1929, Edna married her true love, Cecil Deckard, in Marietta, Oklahoma. They moved to Dexter, Texas, where they farmed until moving to Gainesville, where Cecil became employed as a car inspector for the Santa Fe Railroad. Cecil worked there for thirty years until he retired. One daughter, Christine, was born to this marriage in July of 1935.

While Edna and Cecil lived in Dexter, Texas, they were members of the Methodist Church, where Cecil served on the official church board and Edna sang in the choir. When they moved to Gainesville in 1943, they became active at the First Methodist Church here and Edna taught Sunday School. Her beloved Cecil passed away in 1979 from leukemia, and Christine returned to Gainesville to reside with her mother.

Through Christine, who attended Gainesville High School and had become close friends with Rita Walter, Edna had become acquainted with Joe and Anna Walter and they developed a strong friendship. When Edna made the decision to join the church, she requested that “her friend, Joe Walter” give her instructions. Edna was received into the Catholic faith in 1981 whe Joe Walter serving as godfather and Christine as godmother. Edna has been a faithful member of St. Mary’s ever since. She and Anna always remained devoted to each other.

Her only child, Christine, died following an illness in 1998. Edna eventually moved to Pecan Village and continues to reside there. She loved her flowers, her baseball and politics. Her favorite teams were the Yankees, Chicago Cubs and the Texas Rangers. Ask her to name any player on these teams and she can immediately tell you the team he plays for, his position and his batting average. She keeps up with her sports and the political news by thoroughly reading two newspapers daily. She maintained a wonderful sense of humor and is much loved by those who know her.

Survivors include numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and special friends.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Cecil Deckard; and by her daughter, Christine Deckard.

Pallbearers are Hal Dick, Larry Corbett, Tony Collums, Van Knight, Tommy Woods, Raymond Butts, and Jerry Headrick.

Honorary pallbearers are Mary Jo Graham, Albina Schmitz, Laura Roberson, Karen Bagley, and Rhonda Silmon.

The Rosary will be recited at the Geo. J. Carroll & Son Chapel at 6:30 p.m. today.