Annie Louise (Guinn) Ramsey of Garrison passed away June 13, 2020, in Garrison at the age of 99. Louise was born March 13, 1921, in Sacul, Texas to parents Paul Holden Guinn and Lucy Alice (Vining) Guinn. She is predeceased by her husband of 53 years, Charles Eugene Ramsey. She is predeceased by sisters Pauline (Mark) Jones, Alice (Ray) Parrish, Dorothy Jane (Guinn) Modisette, sons Charles Philip Ramsey and Stephen Patrick Ramsey. She is survived by sister Margaret (Harold) Hoelscher, son John Paul (Cynthia) Ramsey, daughter Melinda Jane (Todd) Spicer, grandchildren Shawn Philip (Jennifer) Ramsey, Lisa Rhiannon (Gary Lee) Montes, William Mark Spicer, great grandchildren Adrianna Upshaw, Madalynn Montes, Raegan Montes and Julia Elizabeth Ramsey and many dear nieces and nephews.
She was a confirmed Missouri Synod Lutheran and a member of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Nacogdoches, Texas.
Louise grew up in Sacul, Cushing, Marshall, Angleton and Rusk, Texas. She attended Stephen F. Austin University in Nacogdoches, Texas and she graduated from Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in1942.
After surviving Tuberculosis, she went to work at Baylor University Medical Center in 1945 and joined the Delivery Room staff. In 1946, she was Clinical Instructor Obstetrics and the following year, she taught Baylor's first Vocational Nursing School. She was named head nurse in the Orthopedic Department in 1948, but later returned to the Maternity Department. She was named Maternity Superivisor in1950, and from 1955-1959 she was Assistant Director of Nursing Service. When the Women and Children's Hospital was opened in 1959, she was appointed Director of Nursing for the hospital. She later became Director of Nursing Service for Truett Medical and Surgical Hospital and then on January 1, 1970, she became Director of Central Nursing Programs, a role in which she served as consultant in the planning of the nursing and patient areas of the new Jonsson Hospital. During the planning of the Women and Children's Hospital, Louise devoted a great deal of time to all aspects of planning. She was credited with "much of the coordination of functional planning that gave the new hospital unexcelled efficiency as well as a feeling of warmth and comfort." During the time she was Maternity Supervisor, she made it a practice to drop by and see each maternity patient. Out of these daily contacts (Baylor had some 80,000 births since she joined the delivery room staff in 1945). Mrs. Ramsey had acquired a knowledge of what the maternity patient desired. She carried this ardent enthusiasm into the daily planning sessions with various committees in mapping detailed plans. Mrs. Ramsey laid the first brick for the Women and Children's Hospital in 1958. Mrs. Ramsey's personal life was closely tied to the hospital in many ways. She met her husband, "Gene" Ramsey, a technical artist for Temco Aircraft while he was at Baylor taking a course in hospital purchasing. All four of their children were born in Dallas at Baylor Hospital.
In 1971, she chose to leave Dallas to raise her younger children in a small town atmosphere and joined Brownwood Community Hospital as Director of Nurses. She also served as Assistant Administrator, Patient Representative and Director of Risk Management. Her home was always open to foreign nurses recruited from Ireland, England, Canada, Pakistan and the Philippines.
She was Nurse Consultant for Boone Powell Associates from 1960-1979.
Her professional memberships included American Nurses Association, National League for Nurses, Texas Hospital Association, Texas Nurses Association District 24 and American Business Women's Association. She was the (first) Chairman for the Council on Hospital Nursing for the Texas Hospital Association and the (first) President ofTexas Society for Nursing Service Administrators.
She served 50 years in her career in Nursing. She was a perky, brown-haired, blue-eyed, warm, enthusiastic nurse and was described by Boone Powell, BUMC Administrator as brilliant and filled with human understanding and he considered her "the best in the country". Her best friend, Shirley described her as a "force". Looking back on her career, Mrs. Ramsey said, "There is no way I could tell anyone what it has meant to me to be a nurse." This has been more than a job--it has been a way of life for me since the very first day.
She was a very devoted mother to her four children. She loved her sisters dearly and for more than 70 years she attended annual Guinn Girl Family Reunions and additional visits whenever possible. In her spare time she enjoyed oil painting and soap sculptures.
Friends and family are invited to a visitation from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Thursday, June 18, 2020, at Cason Monk-Metcalf Funeral Home in Nacogdoches.
Funeral Services will be held at 2:00 p.m. Friday, June 19, 2020, at Cason Monk-Metcalf Sunset Chapel officiated by Pastor John Cain. Interment will follow at Sunset Memorial Park.
Serving as pallbearers will be Shawn Philip Ramsey, William Todd Spicer, William Mark Spicer, Gary Lee Montes, Mark E. Jones, III and Gordon Hoelscher. Honorary pallbearer is John Paul Ramsey.
