Edna Bernice Sabota

Edna is survived by them (Bob and Danni) and her son-in-law, Mark Bazin, and her Papillons Mik and Rachel and grand dogs Cardi and Violet, all of Houston. She is also survived by her siblings John, Edward, Thomas, George and Paul Senick and her sisters Anna Kerecz, Theresa Venseret, Ella Limpar, Cathy Fisher, Dorothy Timko and Helen Young, and many nieces, nephews and their children.

The 12th of 15 children, Edna was born on March 6, 1942, in Bethlehem, Pa., and was the youngest daughter of Joseph and Anna Senick, who preceded her in death. She was also preceded in death by her brothers Michael and Joseph, her sister, Mary Nemeth, her sisters-in-law Dorothy, Elaine and Dolly Senick, and her brothers-in-law Donald Young and James Del Grasso.

Growing up in Bethlehem, she attended Wilson Elementary School, Broughal Middle School and Liberty High School.

Edna was clever and smart, a student of current affairs and an encyclopedia on John Fitzgerald Kennedy family history. During Edna’s father’s tenure as Justice of the Peace for Bethlehem Township, Edna met JFK on the campaign trail of his run for the presidency. “My dear, you look stunning,” he told her—prim in her pink pillbox hat—as they sat at the lunch table.

Edna and Bob knew each other as children but didn’t fall in love until later, soon after they were attending a friend’s wedding reception and Bob suggested that Edna “hang around awhile.” On Saturday nights during their courtship, Edna would close up the Senick family grocery store, which she stocked and managed, on Freemansburg Avenue. She’d run up the hill behind the store to the Senick family house and “dress to the nines” for their date, coiffed with her beehive do.

They married on June 5, 1965, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Bethlehem and gave birth to their only child, Dannielle, the following year. In 1974, her young family relocated to Houston. Edna was the family rock, focal point and a fastidious mental record keeper of important memories and the family tree. In every situation, she knew what to do and she was unwavering in her convictions.

She supported Bob’s career path as an engineering and construction executive and raised Danni to follow her dreams and nurture her own creative soul, even when being her daughter’s mom wasn’t so easy.

Edna focused on her family first and foremost, whether it was orchestrating every detail to create exquisite holiday gatherings or caring for them during an illness. She was an excellent cook and baker and set an impressive dining table that welcomed many loved ones over the years. Creative, talented and successful in everything she pursued—ceramics, floral design, home decorating, gardening, collecting—Edna’s boundless energy inspired everyone she met. Edna loved dogs and babies and never missed the opportunity to celebrate with a gift upon the arrival of a family member or friend’s newborn.

Edna enjoyed her privacy, reading and relaxing in the beautiful home and surroundings she appointed for her family. But when she was invited to a party or gathering—even the many events she attended at her daughter’s home—she arrived in lovely form, bearing a hostess gift.

An utter fashion icon, she unfailingly looked elegant and dignified and took time and pride in planning her attire and selecting occasion-appropriate accessories, although her handbag du jour always held the pouch containing the crystal rosary beads, which were a gift from Bob.

For 20 years, Edna worked as an executive assistant to the chief financial officer and the senior engineering and construction executive at KBR. She artfully juggled globe-trotting travel schedules for colleagues and intricate meeting planning, among myriad tasks. She was a reliable coordinator of the details. Coworkers remember her for her kind heart.

An ardent sports fan, Edna loved baseball and the Philadelphia Phillies, effortlessly maintained a mental catalogue of batting averages and MVPs and raised her daughter right…to, of course, do and love the same. During NASCAR season, Sundays were organized around race time.

Edna was a long-time supporter of community organizations that assist military veterans who are injured or need help like the Wounded Warrior Project and the Salvation Army as well as M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and Rescue Bank.

Edna’s family would like to thank the driven team of doctors and caregivers at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center who truly left no stone unturned to help and comfort Edna. Thank you, too, to the volunteers at PAWS Houston, whose compassionate mission and contribution cannot be measured, and to the many extended family members and friends who prayed for and supported Edna, Bob, Danni and Mark during their most difficult hours.

Family and friends are invited to celebrate Edna’s life at a visitation and rosary from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, July 11, at Memorial Oaks Funeral Home, 13001 Katy Freeway, Houston, 77079. Funeral proceedings will begin at 10:30 a.m. Friday, July 12, at Memorial Oaks Funeral Home with a final visitation and prayer and be followed by a procession to St. Anne’s Catholic Church, 2140 Westheimer, Houston, 77098, for the funeral Mass at 1 p.m. Burial will follow at Glenwood Cemetery, 2525 Washington Avenue, Houston, 77007, under the cypress tree with a view of the Houston skyline and the Old Sixth Ward Historic District.