Nell Rawlings

Nell Rawlings completed her journey on this earth Friday October 11, 2013. She timed her demise, no doubt, to cause the least amount of disruption to an upcoming trip of her favorite traveling companions — her sister Maurice, niece Karen and daughter Valerie.

She was born Nellie Edith Beebe on December 14, 1922 at Eagle Hill, New Mexico, on a homestead claim belonging to her parents. Nell graduated from Portales High School and then from Texas Tech with a degree in Home Economics. She taught Home Ec for one year in Capitan, before deciding to join the Waves in 1943. Nell was stationed in San Diego and served as a Pharmacists Mate, 3rd class, until her discharge in 1946. For her next adventure, she enrolled in Kathryn Gibbs Secretarial School, in Boston, to take advantage of her GI bill benefits. After honing her typing and shorthand skills, Nell moved to Corpus Christi and worked for Sinclair Oil Company for 3 years. During this time she met the love of her life, Charles Rawlings.

After a four month courtship, they married on August 5th, 1950. Their only child, Valerie was born in 1953. Shortly after that, Nell became the first Home Economics teacher at the brand new Baker Jr. High. For 29 years, she instructed thousands of girls and a few daring boys through the intricacies of nutrition, meal planning, shopping, meal prep, cooking, table manners, household budgeting, cleaning, clothing construction, fashion, home design and décor, and grooming. These were the days when the Homemaking Department had a giant room with 3 full kitchens on one side and a bank of sewing machines along another wall. There was a bedroom, bathroom, and a living room/dining room complete with a cabinet containing china, crystal and real silverware! It was an expansive domain and always spotless, orderly and inviting. It seemed to her daughter to be an escape from the harshness of the other classrooms-- maybe it was the curtains. And of course Nell was so kind and nurturing that Home Economics was one of the most popular electives.

Nell and Charles enjoyed dancing, singing together in the church choir, travel, and entertaining friends and all the normal everyday moments of life. After Charles died in 1993, Nell continued to travel with family and friends. She was endlessly fascinated by watching her two grandsons, Ross and Clark grow up. Nell took special delight in her only great-grandchild, a girl named Charly, who is now six years old.

She was in an assisted living facility in Austin and continued to exude an unusual amount of elegance and kindness to everyone she came in contact with. Nell always knew only one way to do things, and that was the right way. She was always concerned about others needs, but seldom expressed any of her own. Nell was an amazing woman and she will be sorely missed.

Nell was a long time member of St. Luke's United Methodist Church. There will be a private service in Corpus Christi on Friday. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to your local Habitat for Humanity.