Jimmie Berniece Wayne

Mrs. Jimmie Berniece Pierce Wayne, 93, of Austin, Texas passed away on Saturday, February 3, 2007 following a brief illness. Mrs. Wayne was born on June 21, 1913 in Marella Community, Collingsworth County, Texas and was the daughter of Mary Jane Wheatley Pierce and James Newton Pierce, where she was raised in and attended schools. On May 9, 1929 she married Lawrence Joel (L.J.) Wayne and was the mother of three sons: Gene Everett, Ralph and James Larry. Mrs. Wayne was a successful businesswoman and restaurateur in several communities for more than 40 years. The Wayne’s were residents of several communities in the South Plains of West Texas as well as living for periods of time in Stone Mountain, Georgia and Daytona Beach, Florida; they spent most of that time in Tulia, Texas, where she and her husband co-owned Hill’s Café of Tulia and later Wayne’s Drive-In, which Tulia patrons fondly recall as a local predecessor to Sonic Drive-In’s, complete with roller skating car hops. Mrs. Wayne and her husband were long active in civic affairs in Tulia, including the Tulia Chamber of Commerce. They were longstanding members of the First Baptist Church of Tulia. Mrs. Wayne and her husband were also in the grocery and feed business in Happy, Texas during the dust bowl years of the 1930’s. During her career, Mrs. Wayne is remembered fondly for never forgetting a customer’s name or face. She is often credited in keeping the business in the black during lean years through her kindness, courtesy, remarkable memory and baking skills, all of which became legendary to their customers throughout the Panhandle and South Plains of Texas. Following their retirement from the restaurant business in 1975, Mrs. Wayne and her husband retired to Brownwood, Texas where they lived and were members of the First Baptist Church of Brownwood. In 1987, they moved to Pittsburg, Texas where they were active in the First Baptist Church of Pittsburg and were active in the Gems senior program of that ministry. They joined their family and fellow Pittsburg friends in 1999 in celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary and were the longest married couple in the church at that time. Mrs. Wayne is survived by two sons: Ralph Wayne of Austin and his wife Martha Ann (Martie) and James Larry Wayne of Austin; four grandsons: Michael Wayne of Dallas, Patrick Wayne of Dallas, Reb Wayne of Austin and Tyler Wayne of Dallas; a niece, Margret Weaver Somerville of Denton, one grandniece, Sherri Somerville Hutchison of Denton; a brother in law, Edmund Martin of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and a sister in law, Daisy Martin of Stone Mountain, Georgia. She was predeceased by her husband, Lawrence Joel (L.J.) Wayne, her son, Gene Everett Wayne and her granddaughter, Carla Diane Wayne. Graveside services will be held in the Garden of Devotion Section at Eastlawn Memorial Cemetery in Brownwood, Texas on Sunday, February 4th, 2007 at 3:00 P.M. The family has requested memorial contributions in lieu of flowers be made to the Gems Senior Program in care of the First Baptist Church, 300 Jefferson Street, Pittsburg, Texas 75686. Condolences and remembrances can be sent to the Wayne Family in care of Ralph Wayne, 401 West 15th Street, Suite 975, Austin, Texas 78701. Obituary and guestbook online at wcfish.com