Lila Pearl Stewart of Mansfield, Texas, passed away on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, at the age of 86. She was born in her family’s home in Avoca, Texas, a small agricultural community southeast of Stamford and 20 miles north of Abilene. Her father was a sharecropper who worked hard to provide for his family, and her mother was a supportive wife, a mother of six, and a source of love and support for her children and grandchildren.
Growing up in Stamford, Lila attended Stamford High School, where she enjoyed playing volleyball and spending time with friends. She worked at a local laundry business.
On April 10, 1964, she married Bill Stewart in her parents’ house in Stamford, and she moved to Wichita Falls, where she and Bill established their home and raised a daughter and a son. Lila and Bill had grown up in hard times, so they didn’t need a lot of possessions to make them happy. Most of their joy was found in family relationships. This remained true for Lila throughout her life. She was always looking forward to the next Thanksgiving, Christmas, or other family gathering.
It was Lila’s testimony that she was a believer in Jesus, and she attended a Baptist church in Mansfield. She would also attend and volunteer to help at senior citizens programs at the Mansfield Activities Center until deteriorating health made her less mobile.
Lila is preceded in death by her husband, Bill Bailey Stewart; her father, Johnny Claude Williams; her mother, Clara Maybel Davis Williams; her sister, Marybelle Smith; three brothers, James Williams, Troy Williams, and Tommy Williams; and a son-in-law, Jack Ray Garrett.
She is survived by one brother, W.R. “Dub” Williams; a daughter, Linda Garrett, and her son, Zack Garrett; a daughter, Nancy Earles; and a son, Walter Stewart and his wife, Stephanie, who have a son, Nathan Stewart, and a daughter, Elizabeth Cullum and her husband, Brandon, who have a son, Teddy.
A Visitation will take place at Moore Bowen Road Funeral Home, 4216 South Bowen Road, Arlington, TX 76016, September 19, 2026, from 9:00 am - 10:00 am.
A Funeral Service will occur on September 19, 2026, from 10:00 am - 11:00 am at Moore Bowen Road Funeral Home, 4216 S. Bowen Road, Arlington, TX, 76016
A Link for streaming of the funeral service will be on the website of Moore Bowen Road Funeral Home, Arlington, TX, 76016, at www.moorebowenroad.com.
The Committal Service will be at Hampton Vaughan Crestview Funeral Home & Memorial Park, 1917 Archer City Hwy, Wichita Falls, TX, 76302m September 19, 2026, at 2:00 p.m.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.moorebowenroad.com for the Stewart family.
