Ector Co. TX - Obits from the Odessa American Online 3 Sep 2000 Submitted by Charlene Beatty Beauchamp cbodessa@classicnet.net Thanks to the Odessa American Online http://www.oaoa.com/ ************************************************************************ USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net/ *********************************************************************** OA Online Obituaries. September 03, 2000 Permian Basin Obituaries _________________________________________________________________ ODESSA Ramona Varela Corrales, 60, of Odessa, died Aug. 31, 2000, at Medical Center Hospital. Services will be at 10 a.m. Monday at Saint Josephs Catholic Church with Fidelo Lugo officiating. Burial will be at Rosehill Cemetery. Rosary will be said at 7 p.m. Sunday at Odessa Funeral Home Memorial Chapel. Arrangements by Odessa Funeral Home. She was Catholic. She was born in Santa Barbara, Chihuahua, Mexico. She is survived by her sons, Manuel Becerra Jr. of Odessa, Javier Becerra Sr. of Big Spring, Rene Becerra Sr. of Odessa and Raymond Becerra of Austin; daughter, Elsa Becerra of Odessa; sisters, Elisa Medrano of El Paso and Petra Gardea Escobar of Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico; and 14 grandchildren. Pallbearers will be Javier Becerra Sr., Rene Becerra Sr., Raymond Becerra, Manuel Becerra, Ezequiel Varela and Hector Escobar. _________________________________________________________________ CARBON Jack L. Myers, 78, of Odessa, passed away Saturday, Sept. 2, 2000, in a local hospital. He worked many years as a crane operator for Armor Cote and Lewie Montgomery. He was a U.S. Army veteran of World War II and was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Moose Lodge. His grandchildren and great-grandchildren all thought "Papa Jack hung the moon." He married Nellie E. Murray on March 8, 1954, in Clovis, N.M. She preceded him in death on Feb. 17, 1988. He also was preceded in death by his parents, Lee and Sally Myers, three brothers and three sisters. He is survived by his son, Tony A. Myers and his wife, Brenda, of Odessa; daughters, Janet L. Talley and Jade Acosta, both of Odessa; brothers, T.E. Myers of Lexington, N.C., Ernest Myers of Mead, Okla., and Hollis Myers of Verdon, Okla.; sisters, Geneva Wells and Neoma Henderson, both of Mead, Okla.; three grandchildren, Melissa Pointer, Rossi E. Myers and Kipp Donovan Talley II; two great-grandchildren, Devin and Samantha. Public visitation will be from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday and from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday at Hubbard-Kelly Funeral Home. Graveside services are scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2000, at Murray Memorial Cemetery in Carbon under the direction of Hubbard-Kelly Funeral Home. _________________________________________________________________ ODESSA Walton Ray Bass Jr., "Ray," 76 years of age, went home to his Lord Aug. 23, 2000, at his residence after a lengthy illness. He was born June 4, 1924, to Paula Inez and Walton Ray Bass Sr. Rays primary occupation was derived from his education in music with Fort Worth private music teachers and in 1941 to 1942 at the North Texas State University in Denton. He started his music career at the age of six years when he conducted the Fort Worth Symphony. During high school, he performed with various orchestras in both the Dallas and Fort Worth areas. His instruments included saxophone, clarinet, string bass and for arranging and composing, the piano. As an adult, he became well known in the big band era as a saxophonist and arranger for Les Browns Orchestra, as well as a back-up performer for such headline stars as Rosemary Clooney and Jack Benny at the Illinois State Fair in 1951, Sammy Davis Jr. at a Veterans Hospital benefit, the Mills Brothers in Las Vegas nightclubs, as well as Dan Rowan and Dick Martins comedy routines before their television fame. He also accompanied major acts with original background music for vaudeville and comedy troupes such as the "Hells-a-Poppin Show." With the popularity of the big band era decreasing, Ray moved to Odessa to settle down from the long hours of traveling and late night performances, although he remained a lifetime member of the Musicians Union and helped organize and perform with local bands. It was here in Odessa that he found and married the love of his life, Willie Mae Lasater, July 15, 1953. In addition to his music, Ray worked as a supervisor of an animal shelter and as an interviewer at the Texas Employment Commission. Then, he took up a secondary craft as a sheet metal layout and pattern cutter working for the Forrest Haney Sheet Metal Company and then Permian Air Conditioning, from which he retired due to illness. Ray served in World War II with the 9th Army Air Corps, stationed in Europe. He was in charge of the Army Air Corps dance and show band, touring the European theater extensively entertaining the troops. He served as bombardier on a B-27 bomber, achieving the rank of 1st Sergeant. Ray is survived by his wife, Willie Mae Bass; his son, Kenneth Ray Bass of Odessa; brothers, John Robert Bass of Fort Worth and Dean Bass of Mexico City; sister, Sue Barton of Bellville; and the joys of his life, his grandchildren, Rhonda Dwan Blake, Kendra Rayette Bass and Stephen Robert BW Bass of Odessa. The family has requested that in lieu of flowers, memorials to the Community Home Care Hospice, 3641 N. Dixie Blvd., Odessa, Texas, 79762, would be much appreciated. Arrangements by Stanton Memorial Funeral Home and Chapel. _________________________________________________________________ ODESSA Carl Louis McCoy, 48, of Odessa, a U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War, died Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2000, at Veterans Hospital in Dallas. Services will be at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Martinez Funeral Home with the Revs. Joddie Garrett and Jackie McCoy officiating. Burial will be at Rosehill Cemetery. Arrangements by Martinez Funeral Home. Public visitation will be from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Monday at Martinez Funeral Home and from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. Tuesday at Martinez Funeral Home. He was a retired government employee. His father, Ira McCoy, preceded him in death. Survivors include his mother and stepfather, Helen and Richard Callaway of Odessa; sons, Charles Hall of Austin and Christopher Pruitt of New Haven, Conn.; brothers, the Rev. Jackie McCoy of Odessa, and Terry McCoy and Gary McCoy, both of Odessa; sisters, Betty McCoy, Carolyn Youngblood, Dorothy Rangel, Linda McCoy, Judy McCoy, and Kay McCoy, all of Odessa, and Ethel McGruder of Midland, Florence Roddy of Waco and Kathy McCoy of Denver, Colo. _________________________________________________________________ ODESSA Zada B. Seely, 68, of Odessa, died Friday, Sept. 1, 2000. Services will be at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Sunset Memorial Gardens with Mike Hill officiating. Burial will be at Sunset Memorial Gardens. Arrangments by Odessa Funeral Home. She was born April 24, 1932, in ODonnell. She was Christian. She is survived by her sons, Weldon Dwayne Seely and his wife, Sherry, and Ronnie Seely and his wife, Frances, both of Odessa; daughters, Marsha F. Hill and her husband, Mike, of Abilene; brothers, Melvin M. Pearce of College Station and Raymond K. Pearce of Graham; five grandchildren, Weldon Wayne Seely of Odessa, Shane and Emily Hill, both of Abilene, Stacy and Monty Durham, both of Amarillo, John Nevill of Odessa and Kristina Cross of Odessa; and countless nieces and nephews. _________________________________________________________________ Copyright © 2000 Odessa American. All rights reserved.