Nelda Roueche Taylor

Nelda is survived by her husband Dan Taylor of Austin; daughters Michelle Roueché and her husband David Thomas of Belton, and Courtney Taylor of Austin; sons Jay Roueche and his wife Elise of Dallas, and John Taylor and his wife Cyndi of Houston; and grandchildren Jack and Caroline Roueche of Dallas. She is also survived by sisters Jane Mason of Suffolk, VA, and Susan Tippett and husband Fred of Statesville, NC, along with several nieces and nephews

Throughout her long and eventful career, Nelda excelled in all areas of her life. She was the author and co-author of several college-level math textbooks, including Business Mathematics: A Collegiate Approach, first published in 1969. Following a divorce from her first husband, she returned to school at the University of Texas at Austin where she received a Master's Degree in Math and Computer Science Education in 1980. During her enrollment there, she was also a participant in the Women in Science program funded by the National Science Foundation.

After graduation, she was hired by Execucom Systems Corporation of Austin as a technical writer and editor. During her 13-year career there, Nelda and her staff of talented writers and editors won multiple awards for excellence in documenting the company's industry-leading applications that ran on mainframe and minicomputers. Following Execucom, Nelda also held documentation management positions at IBM in Austin, Renaissance Software in Los Altos, CA, and Landmark Graphics, a Halliburton Company, in both Houston and Austin, retiring in 2000.

On September 5, 1981, Nelda married Dan Taylor at Northwest Hills United Methodist Church in Austin. Because their courtship was not a lengthy one, Nelda remembered her father's comment when she called to invite him and her mother to Austin for the wedding. Glenn was quoted as saying, "Oh, I didn't know you were seeing anyone."

Along with her professional career, Nelda was always involved in leadership positions at her church. At Northwest Hills UMC, Nelda on multiple occasions served as Chair of the Finance Committee, Treasurer, and chair of the Building Committee during a successful capital improvements campaign. She served on the finance committee of St. Luke's United Methodist Church in Houston, as well as co-chair of the annual stewardship campaign at Tarrytown United Methodist Church in Austin.

Following her retirement, Nelda and Dan enjoyed several years of worldwide travel and ocean cruises. England was always a favorite destination, and Nelda recalled how much she enjoyed celebrating five of her wedding anniversaries there over a period of seven years. Venice was another favorite destination.

In 2004, Nelda was diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer's disease. Dan functioned as her primary caregiver until late 2010, when her declining cognitive and physical capabilities dictated that she live in the memory care unit of an assisted living center. During Nelda's passage through all stages of the disease, she remained calm, at peace, and a favorite of the various care givers in the facilities where she lived. Not once did she complain about wanting to go "back home" or express anger that such a debilitating illness had come to her.

Strengthened by her strong faith in God and in Jesus Christ, Nelda always believed that there was grace sufficient for every need. Her deep faith and hardworking attitude inspired all who knew her.

A memorial service will be at 10 am, Saturday, April 18, in the Sanctuary at Tarrytown United Methodist with the Rev. Dr. Margot Perez-Greene officiating. A reception will follow in the Fellowship Hall. Inurnment of her remains will be in the columbarium at St. Luke's United Methodist Church in Houston at a later date..

Those wishing to make a memorial contribution in Nelda's memory may do so to Tarrytown United Methodist Church, 2601 Exposition Blvd., Austin, TX 78703, or to Hospice Austin (www.hospiceaustin.org).