August 12, 1933 – July 18, 2024
Mrs. Berry, age 90, passed away Thursday July 18, 2024 in Houston, TX. She was born August 12, 1933 in a house in Enterprise (now Alexandria), LA. and raised in Pineville, LA. Mrs. Berry was a resident of Houston TX for 69 years. She was one of nine children, born to Clarence Alexander and Julia Ruth Belgard Peart of Pineville. She married Rudolph (Rudy) Hicks Berry and moved to Houston with their two daughters in 1955, when Rudy got a teaching position there.
Wanda was a confident,resourceful woman and had a strong sense of right and wrong. She was fiercely devoted to her family, always putting their needs before her own. She was an excellent cook, seamstress, and homemaker. She was always willing to help any way she could. Her love of family extended to all present here today.
She was very frugal, raising five children on Rudy’s teaching salary. She could stretch a meal and find the bargains. She and Rudy managed to buy a house and later a rental house on his salary, which was quite an accomplishment, back in the fifties and sixties.
She was a hard worker, assisting Rudy in the complete refurbishing of the house they bought… from sheet rock, laying oak floors, ceiling tiles,and painting, to adding on another bathroom/ bedroom and enlarging the kitchen.
Wanda was also an educator, even though she only had a high school diploma, and made sure that all her children could read, write, and do arithmetic before entering first grade. This did not always please the teachers because her children were ahead of everyone else. She pushed them to do their best and would accept nothing less.
She was a godly mother, who taught her children to be respectful to elders and others. She taught the importance of being honest and the value of a good work ethic. She was quick to forgive and never held a grudge. She was always upbeat and didn’t waste her time being depressed. She didn’t worry or get upset about things, especially politics. She’d say God has it all in His hands, so why get upset, just trust. She gave to many charities, her favorite being Samaritan’s Purse. She loved her grandchildren and great grandchildren that came along later. They brought her much joy!
Lastly, she was completely devoted to Rudy. He was fifteen years older than her and suffered with a stroke and Alzheimer’s while she was still young. She cared for him unselfishly, doing what many spouses would have passed off to a nursing home. She kept her covenant vows to the very end. She taught her daughters ,by example,how to be good helpmates.
Wanda was a faithful, loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother who was the heart and soul of her family. She was a loving sister to her surviving brother, sister, and many nieces and nephews. She will be greatly missed, but never forgotten! We know she’s finally home with Jesus and all the family who have gone before her.
She is preceded in death by her parents, her husband, her siblings: Patsy (who died at age 10), Clarice Pennington, Sonny Peart, Hattie Savoie, Peggy Balentine, Kerney Peart, and Son In-Law Wayne Allen Poston.
She is survived by her brother, Gregg Peart and sister, Beverly Fox (Jerry); her children: Rethea Poston of Boynton Beach, Florida; Donna Kuropata (Frank), Wayne Berry (Thomas Lee), Julia Berry, Robert Berry (Mary) all of Houston, Texas
Grandchildren: Lindsey Poston Diley (Scott) of Jacksonville, Florida; Britney Poston Cooper (Jason) of Lake Worth, Florida; Courtney Poston Anello (Tom) of Boynton Beach, Florida; Ashley Kuropata Trlica (Jarrod) of Houston; Stacy Kuropata Jackson (Chris) of Houston; Sean Berry and Madilyn Berry of Houston.
Great grandchildren Mace and Nora Diley of Jacksonville, Florida; Makayla and Micah Cooper of Lake Worth, Florida; Sonya and Nadia Trlica of Houston; and numerous nieces, nephews and great nieces and nephews.
There will be a viewing at Hixson Brothers Funeral Home in Alexandria on Saturday, July 27, beginning at 11a.m. Services will be held at 1p.m. with Pastor Joshua McElwee officiating. Burial will be at Pleasant Grove United Methodist Cemetery, 85 Duncan Road, Pineville LA 71360 following the service.