Thais O'Neil Heider

Thais O'Neil Heider passed away peacefully surrounded by her loved ones into the hands of the Lord on Saturday, October 22, 2016. She was born on September 28, 1927. She was a native of New Orleans, longtime resident of St. Bernard Parish, and lived in Slidell for the past 22 years. She is preceded in death by her loving husband of 56 years, Edward F. Heider, their son, Edward F. Heider Jr., her parents, Isabelle and William O'Neil, and her siblings, Lucille Dauterive, Cyril O'Neil and Harold O'Neil. She is survived by her sister, Joyce Penkal. Thais was a loving mother and mother-in-law to her children and their spouses, Thais (Tassie) Wahl (Rob), Kimberly Custer (Bob), William (Jennifer), Ronald, Catherine Ringer (Joey) and Angela Heider. She adored her ten grandchildren, Christopher, Matthew, Robert, Taylor, Jon, Heather, Cody, Zachary, Ronald Jr. and Blake, and two great-grandchildren, Tyler and Mason. She was also loved dearly and will be missed by many nieces, nephews and cousins. In her career, she served as a school secretary at St. James Major Catholic High School in New Orleans for over 20 years, touching many lives on a daily basis. Later in life, Thais made many friends through her various social activities: being a member of two ladies' clubs, participating in prayer meetings, breakfast and dinner gatherings, and especially while playing cards. She cherished dearly her lifelong friends, Vera, Pat, Audrey and Dot. She treasured times spent with family and will be sorely missed at family gatherings. Relatives and friends are invited to celebrate her life on Saturday, October 29, 2016, at St. Luke the Evangelist Catholic Church in Slidell. Visitation will begin at 8:30 am with a funeral Mass to follow at 10:00 am. Interment will be at Lake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home at 3:00 pm that afternoon. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Lake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home.