Douglas Mildred Moseley

Doug was a southern beauty born on July 4, 1930 in Nashville, Tennessee. Her mother and father desperately wanted a boy, they already had two daughters. They had not picked a girl’s name – only Douglas for a son. So they named her Douglas anyway, namesake of her father. Douglas struggled her whole life with her name, writing in her legal pad memoirs “Oh the trouble my name has caused me over the years. I've told everyone if my obituary says ‘Mr.’ I'll come back to haunt them.”

Doug was a child of the Depression era, who like so many others of that time, suffered financial hardship. When she was nine years old her father was no longer part of the family so she was raised with her 4 siblings by her strong and loving mother Estelle. Her childhood experiences, good and bad, largely shaped who she became as an adult.

Doug was proud of her southern and American roots and spent time tracing her family heritage back to the early American Revolution era in Boston, Massachusetts. Even after 60 plus years living in Texas she still pronounced some words with a southern accent like ‘Mondee’, ‘Tuesdee’, and ‘Wednesdee’.

She was equally proud of Texas which she came to by way of El Paso having moved there at the age of 19 with her mother to join her sister Carolyn. There she began her career in banking and met and married her husband of 61 years, Jack. She spoke fondly of El Paso and the fun she had the 5 – 6 years she lived there. In her early marriage, she and Jack moved to Dallas, and eventually Farmers Branch, which she considered her home. She was proud of all Dallas had to offer, and would be personally offended if anyone spoke poorly of her adopted home.

Doug was smart beyond her high school education. She was a voracious reader, often staying up well beyond her kids’ bedtime to read a few more chapters. Like her mother she was adept at financial accounting. She did her homework to succeed as a bank officer with two Farmers Branch banks, learned the federal tax code for her work at the IRS, and later in life as a volunteer with Senior Adult Services, would research resources to assist Farmers Branch’s elderly citizens. She was also an aspiring writer, having written her life story in long hand and researched getting her stories published.

A loyal friend, Doug maintained decades long friendships with many including Barbara Hafner from her time in El Paso, and Wanda Lawrence, Wanda Spurgeon and Beth Shirley whose friendship began in the late 50’s from their Pyramid Drive neighborhood. She had long lasting friendships with many from her First Christian Church family – Dortha Terrell, Janice Free, Lee Ann Osborn and so many others. She loved to chat, talking by phone or over coffee with friends, and staying up until the wee hours of the morning talking with her sisters when they visited.

From early childhood, being a good Christian was important to Doug. As a little girl, she told her father she worried God didn’t love her because she wasn’t always ‘good’. He told her God realized it was just a lot harder for her to be good so He loved her just as much. She was raised in the Southern Baptist church in Nashville. First Christian Church of Carrollton became her church home after moving to Farmers Branch. She served as the co-treasure of the church memorial fund for several years and in her later life enjoyed the weekly Bible study classes.

Above all else, Doug was an exemplary mother and grandmother.

Although she was not the best cook - her repertoire was very limited - or the best housekeeper – the dust could be addressed tomorrow - her priority was always her kids and grandkids. She spent countless hours as a Girl Scout volunteer, making costumes for dance recitals and plays, shuttling to and from school and sports activities, proctoring the completion of homework, and so much more.

She learned to work around her notoriously frugal husband Jack to make sure her daughters had extras like music lessons and dance lessons, tutors when needed, a car during high school and college, and enough money put away for their college educations (no student loans required).

She was a force to be reckoned with if she thought one of her girls or grandkids were not being treated fairly. When daughters Cheryl and Gayle were in high school she helped the RL Turner principal understand it would be best not to suspend Cheryl for taking Gayle home when she was ill without permission to leave the campus. She counseled granddaughter Meredith’s pre-school teacher on multiple occasions on how much and what discipline was appropriate. (She could make teachers cry!)

She was selflessly giving of her time with her grandkids. She was always there to lend a hand with the newborns and took care of her grandson Declan personally the first full year of his life. She was the chauffeur, school uniform preparer, nursemaid and homework policewoman for her granddaughters Grace and Meredith. She would fly to St Louis on a moment’s notice to care for her grandchildren Jack and Dan when needed.

She was the matriarch of her family, the connection between her daughters when they were grown with busy families of their own. She kept them up to date on each other’s lives in her weekly Saturday phone calls which were often over an hour long (remember, she liked to chat!).

Even in her waning years when she suffered from dementia her face would light up with that beautiful smile when her children or grandchildren visited.

Doug was her family’s rock, a good friend, loving sister, daughter and wife. She will be remembered and missed for her selfless, dependable love. She is survived by her sister Carolyn Parker, daughters Cheryl Huckabee, Gayle Roberts and Karen Cherico and their husbands Mark, Bill and Tom, and five grandchildren, Jack Huckabee and wife Gabriela, Dan Huckabee, Grace Paulter, Meredith Roberts and Declan Cherico.

Funeral Services

Tues, Jan 3 2017, 11:00 am

First Christian Church

1835 Walnut Ave

Carrollton, Texas 75006

Arrangements under the direction of Rhoton Funeral Home, Carrollton, TX.