Cornelia was born on March 26, 1916 in Austin, Texas, to Benjamin Madison and Mabel Claire Spears. She was raised in South Austin and made her home there all of her 95 years. She went to be with her heavenly Father and other loved ones on Thursday, May 5, 2011.
When she was in her early twenties, two friends insisted that she meet a young man named Ray Strauss, who was working for them at Sander’s Drug Store. On October 5, 1940, she and Ray were married in her parents’ living room. To their union two children, Rae Lynn and William Earl, were born.
After Ray’s death in 1962, Cornelia returned to the workforce in order to support her children and herself. She worked at the Vital Statistics Bureau of the City of Austin, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and retired from the Internal Revenue Service.
Cornelia met Billy M. Adams on a blind date and they were married on March 25, 1976. Cornelia and Billy spent the next fourteen years traveling, bowling, dancing and visiting with family and friends. Billy died in December 1990.
Cornelia was happy and fun loving despite the difficulties in her life. She usually was smiling and could find something to tease and laugh about. She was a life-long member of Congress Avenue Baptist Church, a member of the Deborah Sunday School class and the Hallelujah Choir.
She was preceded in death by her husbands, her son, her parents and her siblings.
She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Rae and Eddie Barho; grandsons, Greg Barho of Smithville, Texas, and Corby Barho, and his wife, Tracy, of Pflugerville, Texas; great-grandchildren, Kristen, Jason and Kaleb Barho; cousins, nieces and nephews and the Barho family who embraced her as their own.
Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m., Tuesday, May 10, 2011 in the Chapel of Cook-Walden/Forest Oaks Funeral Home. Interment will follow at Cook-Walden/Forest Oaks Memorial Park.
Honoring Mrs. Adams as pallbearers will be Greg Barho, Corby Barho, Carl Barho, Casey Barho, Terry Pittsford, and Glynn Hendrickson.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to Family Eldercare or to the charity of your choice.
The family thanks the staff at West Oak Rehabilitation and Health Care and Hospice for their loving care of Cornelia.
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