Sue Ramey LaBay

Sue left this earth to be with her Lord Jesus on July 14, 2026, at the age of 90 in her home surrounded by loved ones.

She was born December 18,1935 at her parents’ home on a farm in the small town of Golden, Wood County, Texas. Sue’s father, John Virgil Gilbert, earned a living as a farmer. Her mother, Billie Gilbert, was a homemaker. Sue loved the farm and delighted as a young child following her father to the watermelon, sweet potato, cantaloupe and tomato patches. Learning to drive a tractor at the age of 9, she became proficient at supervising a crew during the watermelon gathering time.

Sue graduated from Golden High School where she was the captain of the basketball team and Valedictorian of her class. Sue met and married her childhood sweetheart, Billy Fred Ramey and remained married until his death in 1976. She later attended Kilgore Junior College. In 1979, Sue married Bob La Bay and remained married until his death in 2018.

She was a member of the Church of Christ having been baptized at the age of twelve years. Her church was very special to her and her life was spent not only as a servant to her family, the elderly and shut-in groups, as evidenced by her many years of serving the We Care Ministry, but also serving as a women’s prayer group leader and Food Coordinator of the food ministry for many years. Especially close to her heart was the Mom’s with Children program at Medina Children’s Home and Breckenridge Village of Tyler, both of which she supported tirelessly. She served as a PTA President, 4-H Club Leader and Brownie Leader. She retired from Pine Tree Independent School District after serving 21 years on the Primary School staff. Prior to Pine Tree, she was secretary at Ware Elementary School in Longview.

Sue enjoyed life, traveling in her RV, settling down by a restful lake with a good book. There was no fear in getting behind the wheel of the motorhome and driving to any state in the U.S. She and Bob were fortunate to travel to all 50 states and 6 provinces of Canada and numerous national parks. She especially enjoyed traveling and camping with her grandchildren.

She was an avid fan and supporter of her grandchildrens’ activities and could be seen at any given time at soccer games, equestrian competitions, band concerts, marching contests, swim meets, choir concerts, baseball, basketball and football games as well as any other activities her grandchildren participated in. Likewise, she continued to follow her great-grandchildren as well at baseball, soccer, basketball, golf, track, football and dance…supporting them when she could. She loved hosting her family and friends in her home. She spent time working on the genealogy of her family and delighted in locating distant relatives and traveling to meet them and sharing family information.

In her later years, she developed a love for the game of Bridge and loved her Bridge friends. Games were always a part of family life. Her husband Bob invented and patented a game called Peg’s Play and Draw…and yes, for those of you that have played it, you will recall the powerful “Golden Peg” card, imprinted with the year of her birth, that held the power to help you win, protect others, put others in front of yourself and be the best you can be. So much like Sue herself.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Virgil and Billie Gilbert, her first husband of 24 years and father of her 4 children, Bill Ramey. Also preceding her in death are her sisters, Jonnie Trussell and Anne Weeks as well as her second husband of 39 years, Bob La Bay, adding five La Bay boys to the family.

Sue is survived by her four children: Deborah Jones (Garry) of Marshall, Sharon Freeman (Tom) of Longview, Randall Ramey (Melissa) of The Woodlands and Judith Ramey of Longview. Also, her La Bay boys: David La Bay (Susan) of Hallsville, Danny La Bay (Lou) of Hallsville, Dean La Bay of New Orleans, Darin La Bay (Corie) of Kilgore and Devin La Bay (Cammy) of Athens, Alabama. Her grandchildren: Kevin Jones (Hillary) of Caddo Mills, Kathryn Daltry (Ryan) of Huffman, Perry Ramey (Beth) of Houston, Morgan Addington (Chase) of Dallas, Madeline Reeder (Adam) of Houston and Ashleigh Buchanan (Frank) of Longview. Nine La Bay grandchildren: Jesse La Bay of Hallsville, Bret La Bay of Hallsville and Daniel La Bay (Jenny) of Hallsville, David J. La Bay (Ashley) of Longview, Rebecca La Bay of Tucson, Sheridan Attilio (Jake) of Tucson, Trevor La Bay, U.S. Air Force of Del Rio, Cullen La Bay of Athens, Alabama and Rose La Bay of New Orleans. Sixteen great-grandchildren: Lana, Parker, Quinn, Grant, Carter, Juliet, Riley, PJ, Don, Ramey, Bronwyn, Buck, Evey, Tripp, Nolan and Zoie.

Sue is also survived by her dear brother, John Virgil Gilbert, Jr. (Susan) of Ft. Worth. She was a devoted Aunt and tried to follow the successes of many special nieces and nephews.

Flowers are permitted or memorial donations may be sent to:

Pine Tree Church of Christ Mission Fund, 3221 Dundee Rd., Longview, Tx 75604 or Breckenridge Village of Tyler, a special place called home by adults with intellectual disabilities, 15062 CR 1145, Tyler, TX 75704.

The family would like to send special thanks and gratitude to Dr. Kathleen Harris, PrimeCare Hospice and Visiting Angels of Longview and our private caregivers, Helen and Nannette. Thank you for the tender care you gave to our mother and becoming her friends.

Visitation will be held August 1st, 1:00pm followed by a Celebration of Life at 2:00pm at Pine Tree Church of Christ, 3221 Dundee Rd., Longview, TX 75604. There will be a private graveside service.