Lucille Marie Boyd

Lucille "Lou" Marie Boyd, 102, died peacefully in her home on June 30, 2011. Lou was born on February 27, 1909, in St. Albans, Vermont, to Peter J. Belhumeur and Josephine Marie Belhumeur. As a young child, Lou and her family lived in Albany, New York before moving to Washington, D.C. where she graduated from high school and then attended George Washington University. At age fifteen, Lou met the love of her life, Howard T. Boyd, who, some ten years later, became her husband in a marriage that lasted more than 57 years until his death in 1992. Lou also was preceded in death by her brother, Raymond Belhumeur, and her daughter, Deborah Boyd. Lou is survived by her son, Dennis Boyd and wife, Diane P. Boyd, of Houston, Texas, her daughter, Sharon Rodriguez, and husband, Roland Rodriguez, of San Antonio, Texas, grandson, Brian T. Boyd and wife, Karin G. Boyd, of Santa Fe, New Mexico, grandson Howard T. Boyd, and wife, Julie S. Boyd of New Orleans, Louisiana, grandson, Brett T. Berly and wife, Dawn D. Berly of Houston, Texas, grandson, Robert Rodriguez, of Converse, Texas, granddaughter, Melissa Rodriguez Rendon, of Round Rock, Texas, and many great grand children.

Lou and her family lived in Houston from 1952 to 1957 and then moved to Greenwich, Connecticut, until 1967 before returning to Houston where she remained until her death. Lou's outgoing personality and engaging wit enabled her to easily communicate with and relate to persons in all walks of life, and wherever she went, those who were lucky enough to have met Lou quickly recognized that their lives were enriched by this remarkable woman.

As a young woman, Lou worked as a personal assistant to the director of the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. and was involved with numerous charitable activities in the different communities where she lived. Lou and her husband, Howard, traveled to many places throughout the world through his business activities, and she was an invaluable asset to him during those endeavors. Lou was a member of St. Michaels Catholic Church, River Oaks County Club, Houston County Club where she had many friends both in the membership and the staff and any number of other organizations too numerous to mention.

The family wishes to thank Lou's caretakers, Vera Owens, Olivia Navarro, Clementine Jackson, Bertha Bryant, and Rosebud Allen for the special care and attention that they provided to Lou during the last years of her life. Their kind efforts and devoted service enabled Lou to remain in her home and helped to make that phase of her life much better than it otherwise would have been.

A visitation will be held at Forest Park Westheimer Funeral Home located at 12800 Westheimer, Houston, Texas 77077 on Wednesday, July 6, 2011, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. A memorial service will be held in the chapel at Forest Park Westheimer Funeral Home on Thursday, July 7, 2011, with Deacon Don Bradley of St. Cecelia's Catholic Church officiating with the burial to follow at Forest Park Westheimer Cemetery. Pall bearers will be Brian T. Boyd, Howard T. Boyd, Brett T. Berly, John Strohlein, M.D., Tom Lawless and Brian Morr.

The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in Lou's name to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee or to the Paralyzed Veterans of America.