Ector Co. TX - Obituaries from the Odessa American Online Submitted by Sonny Hall shall@balista.com 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. Permian Basin Obituaries Copyright © 1999-2002 Odessa American. All rights reserved =========================================================================== Thursday September 05, 2002 Vinia Jean Bledsoe ODESSA - Mrs. Vinia Jean Swoopes Bledsoe passed away Saturday, Aug. 31, 2002, at Medical Center Hospital. She was born June 18, 1934 in Lott, Texas, to Mr. Mack Swoopes Sr. and Mrs. Inez Truesdale Swoopes. She began school in Kansas City, Mo. She was one of seven children, two of whom have preceded her in death. The family moved to Odessa in 1941, and she resumed her education in Ector County Independent schools; first at Douglas Elementary School and later at Blackshear Jr./Sr. High School. She was very active in basketball and track and field, as she lettered in both. She later attended Odessa College and Wilson’s Beauty College from which she graduated. Immediately after graduation, she became an operator at Bivian’s Beauty Salon where she worked for many years before she retired. She was later employed by Texas Electric Service Co. for 17 years before retirement. Mrs. Bledsoe was married to Mr. Lawrence Bledsoe Sept. 4, 1955, by the late Rev. W.R. Ockletree, pastor of St. James Baptist Church, where she was a member. Funeral services are scheduled for 2 p.m. today at Bethlehem Baptist Church with the Rev. Roscoe S. Sutton officiating. Interment will follow at Rose Hill Cemetery. Visitation will be from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. today at Martinez Funeral Home. She was preceded in death by her parents and two siblings, a brother and a sister. She is survived by her husband, Lawrence Bledsoe of Odessa; one son, Vincent Bledsoe of Houston; brother, Mack Swoopes Jr. of Odessa; sisters, Willie Ruth Houston of Harrisburg, Penn., Billy Swoopes and Jackie L. Hammond and her husband Lee R. Hammond, all of Odessa; two uncles, William Swoopes of Kansas City, Mo., and James Truesdale of Lott; two aunts, Addie Ruth Butcher of Oakland, Calif. and Freddie B. Taylor of Dallas; three nieces; twelve nephews; and a host of other relatives. Melba Jane Shannon ODESSA - Melba Jane Shannon, 62, passed away Friday, Aug. 30, 2002, at her residence. She was born Jan. 20, 1940, to Charles and Christine Reid in Brownfield, Texas. Melba was a resident of Odessa and a member of Primitive Baptist Church in Brownfield. She had owned Water Plus since 1991. She passed after fighting a brief battle with cancer. She married John Shannon on Oct. 4, 1956 in Seminole. Chapel services were scheduled for 11 a.m. Monday, Sept. 2, 2002, at Sunset Memorial Funeral Chapel with Troy Wilke officiating. Her husband, her father and one sister, Avis Shurley, all preceded her in death. Survivors include her two sons, Richard Alan & Marleen Shannon of Odessa, and Steven Paul & Lacrisa Shannon of Houston; a daughter, Lora & Max Masel of Phoenix, Ariz; mother, Christine Reid of Brownfield; a brother, Glen Reid of Brownfield; and 11 grandchildren. Pallbearers consisted of Kasey Farrar, Calvin Watkins, Max Masel, Lawson Farrar, Raff Gray, and Wallace Vest. Memorials may be made to Hospice of Midland. Services are under the direction of Sunset Memorial Funeral Home. Reba Lorene Teague ODESSA - Reba Lorene Teague, 82, of Odessa, passed away Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2002, at the Hospice House. She was born March 24, 1920, in Sanger, Texas. She was a bookkeeper for Bearing Supply Co. for 34 years. She was preceded in death by her parents, John and Lois Henderson; husband, Raymond Wesley Teague; and brother, Bob Henderson. She is survived by her daughters, Pat Johnson and Mary Ann Shirley, both of Odessa, and June Ocker of Oklahoma City, Okla.; sister, Eva Lou Walters of Odessa; six grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren. Reba loved her family and friends and was loved by all of them. Services will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6, 2002, at Hubbard-Kelly Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Bob Bratcher officiating. Interment will follow at Sunset Memorial Gardens. Services entrusted to Hubbard-Kelly Funeral Home. Copyright © 1999-2002 Odessa American. All rights reserved.