Eudora Elizabeth Guess Cassel

Eudora Elizabeth Guess Cassel

September 16, 1908 to October 30, 2010

“Beloved Mother and Grandmother, Lover of God, Lover of Family”

Eudora was born on September 16th, 1908 in Rogers, Texas to Bailey & Mary Guess. There were seven children in her family: Erwin, Clayton, Eudora, B.L., Annie Mae, Ophelia and Frances. As the oldest daughter, she often acted as mother while both of her parents worked. Her father owned a furniture store, and her mother operated a hat shop at the front of the store. The store front window displayed the beautiful hats her mother made by hand. Her maternal grandmother, Mrs. Lupton, fondly known as "Luppy," also lived with them. When Eudora was 14 her family moved to Austin Texas, to a house which was only a few blocks from the Texas state capitol building. All of her siblings seemed to agree that, "Mama was THE BEST COOK IN THE WORLD!" As it was during the depression era, money was always scarce, and there was often barely enough food on the table to feed their large family. Eudora recalls the times that "Mama" gave the last plate of food, which was hers, to a hungry stranger who happened along during mealtime. Regarding her parents Eudora has said more than once, "A better two people you'll never meet." One of Eudora’s favorite childhood memories was when her “Papa" took the family on a trip to the river in a rented covered wagon!

On January 7, 1933 at the age of 25, she married Walker Joel Cassel. They had one daughter, Mary Lou, who was born on July 21st, 1935 in her grandparent’s house in Austin. Walker worked a variety of jobs, many in sales, and they lived in many places: Uvalde, Kingville, Dallas, Arizona, South Pasadena, Boston, Louisville, and Ontario. While living in Boston when Mary Lou was 13, Walker became very ill and the doctors said there was nothing more they could do for him. Eudora found an ad in the newspaper for a "food supplement" called Nutrilite (now owned by Amway, but in those days Nutrilite was a small, relatively unknown business and vitamins were very uncommon). They purchased some Nutrilite, which Walker took and totally recovered. Delighted, Eudora and Walker came in on the ground floor of Nutrilite, obtaining a solid base of distributors which developed into a very successful and profitable business. Eudora, gifted in organization and administration, ran their office in South Pasadena, California while Walker did outside sales which was his strength. Special memories of her married life were their weekend trips to various places in California such as the Redwood Forest, but especially camping in the mountains of Yosemite.

After Walkers passing in 1977, Eudora moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan to live with her daughter, son-in-law Bill, and grand children Julie and Patrick. She enjoyed many vacations with her daughter’s family to Hawaii, Guess Family Reunions in Texas, and when the family stayed in cabins along the Great Lakes during the summers they all lived together.

Eudora continued to manage her Nutrilite distributors long-distance from her desk in the study, working on “the books” once a month. In 1985 they all moved to Houston, Texas. Eudora shared an apartment with her sister Ophelia for about nine years, always living just a short distance from Mary Lou’s residence. After spending many more years living with her daughter and son-in-law, Eudora decided to move to an assisted living facility. She lived very happily at Sunrise Assisted Living for almost 3 1/2 years until the day she went home to Heaven. She was 102 and 44 days old.

Some of Eudora's Favorites:

• Car -- Cadillac (she and Walker owned several).

• Meal – Homemade cornbread and pinto beans!

• Snack -- Ginger snaps (gotta have a lot of BITE to them)!

• Dessert – Pumpkin Pie (or pecan, but she never ate the crust)! Or just plain ole vanilla ice cream.

• Songs -- "How Great Thou Art" & "Just a Closer Walk with Thee."

• Place -- The mountains of California (being in them, or even just seeing them from a distance)!

• Hobbies -- Reading, working in her flower beds, spending time with her family, & watching TBN.

• Phrase -- "God has been GOOD to me!"

• Best Advice -- "Just be THANKFULl!" "Be good to yourself! Just RELAX!" " Be patient... Rome wasn't built in a day!"

Interesting Eudora Trivia:

• At the age of 80 she worked out regularly at a health club!

• A friend of the late Colonel Sanders (founder of KFC), who was in Kiwanis with Walker. He then owned only a single chicken stand on the side of the road.

• A descendant of John Lance Garner, Vice President of the U.S. under F.D.R.

• A descendant of Edgar Guest, who was a famous poet.

• She was the "Guess Matriarch," the oldest living member of her family for many years!

• Believed to be the only person in her family to live to be 100+ in the last several centuries!

Upon her passing, Eudora was the Mother of two, Mary Lou & son-in-law Bill: Grandmother of three, Julie, Patrick & grand daughter-in-law Deborah: Great Grandmother to five, John-Michael, Savannah, Michaela, Richard & Cole: And GREAT GREAT Grandmother to Caleb! She has been an incredible friend, mother, grandmother, a great listener, a source of strength, wisdom & encouragement, and an example of grace, kindness and generosity to many who know her. We have been incredibly honored and blessed to have had her in our lives! She will be greatly missed…