Mrs. Muriel M. (St. Andre') Hardeman

Mrs. Muriel M. (St. André) Hardeman was born September 17, 1930 in Lake Charles, Louisiana to Edwin St. André and Lena Cook. She went home to the Lord on March 4, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. She was a member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Lake Charles as a young child. She accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior at age 73. She was a member of the Micmac tribe.

Mama/Grandma retired from the U.S. Postal Office. She and her husband, Chester F. Hardeman, Jr., owned and operated Hardeman’s BBQ on Singleton in West Dallas.

Mama/Grandma taught her kids and grandkids about investing in real estate, first edition books, and collectibles. Lots and lots of collectibles—from coins to porcelain dolls to teapots to model cars to Christmas teddy bears. Her favorite holiday was Christmas because she got to be Santa, and she did it very well—for family, friends, and neighbors. She’d get excited about a new business idea; was always ready to open up another BBQ place; and would listen for hours while her kids, grands, and greats told her about everything and nothing at all.

Known for high standards and etiquette, she was always called Mrs. Hardeman. If you were allowed to call her Muriel, she was extending you great favor. She also had specific rules, including: a woman never leaves the house without stockings and earrings; a little girl should not have callouses on her hands from the monkey bars; if you’re tired enough to sleep on the couch, you go to a bedroom with a proper bed; pick up your feet, no shuffling; always address any elder by a title, never on a first-name basis. And when others used perfume, she remained her ever-elegant self with her special Estée Lauder powder (often sending family on a goose hunt to find more!).

She enjoyed zydeco and country music, Western movies, the Rockettes, Nora Roberts and James Patterson books, potato salad, pork chops with rice and brown gravy, boudin, and a chilled can of Coca-Cola. As for the books, she consumed them, really. It was a common sight with her in that orange floral sofa chair in the corner of her living room with a stack of eight or more books piled next to her. It was also common to hear from her a few days later asking to go to Half Priced Books because that stack didn’t last her long enough. And for years, almost every day at 6 pm, she would watch Wheel of Fortune.

She also loved to dance. “That generation” of St. André kids danced through life and took their kids dancing through life with them. Whether a zydeco step with a nephew at a family gathering or a snap of her fingers to Boot Scootin’ Boogie, Mama/Grandma loved to move.

She was always up and about, keeping busy, doing whatever needed to be done. She would often hear—and ignore—“Mama, please go sit down.”

Mama/Grandma was a giver, a fighter, a champion for many causes. She often gave her time, energy, and money to causes like March of Dimes, St. Jude’s, and St. Elizabeth school and church. This is one of the many ways she demonstrated her faith and walk with God, by living it. Mama/Grandma modeled her faith for her kids and grandkids, whether in Louisiana, California, or Texas. She transferred her love of people and her giving spirit to her kids and grandkids too. And it’s that same spirit that caused her to work tirelessly to provide for her family, including traveling to Lake Charles, Louisiana (6 hours one-way) every weekend to care for her aging parents. Anyone she ministered to can share the positive and impactful way she shaped their life.

Mama/Grandma is survived by her daughter Pamela Mullen (Vernon); her stepdaughter Patricia Darden (Michael); her grandchildren Christopher Thigpen Mullen (Xochitl), James Bell II, Semaj Vallot (Dan), Vernon Mullen II (Kionna), and Christina Carroll (Osman); her great-grandchildren Nicole Self, Brenden Smith, Athena Mullen, and Emerson Carroll; and her sisters Patricia Chase and Tammy Prier. She is also survived by two step-grandchildren, Danielle Mullen and LaTonia Mullen (Tim); three step-great-grands, Shaun Cavitt, Jr., Tim Hillary, Jr., and Jalil Carroll; and a host of (great) nieces and nephews. She joins her husband, Chester “Chet” Hardeman, Jr.; her two children, Mavis Bell and Ronald Nash; and her siblings Isabella Jackson, Dorothy Dozier, Brenda Narcisse, Edwin St. André Jr., Charles St. André, and Larry Gene St. André.