Bessie Ann Cates Phillips Starnes was my grandmother. She was the daughter of
Edward J. Cates and Helen Kurtz. She was born in Sebastian Co, AR, and has
many living cousins in Arkansas. Edward J. Cates was the son of Thomas
Jefferson Cates, son of Joseph Cates.
- Charlie Ward
Corpus Christi Caller-Times, Sunday, March 18, 2001
Bessie P. Starnes
MATHIS - Bessie Phillips Starnes, a homemaker and member of Faith Temple
Assembly of God in League City, and a member of Women's Missionary Council,
died March 16, 2001. She was 94.
Survivors include five daughters, Bertha Lopez of Bullhead City, Ariz.,
Hazel Graham of Mathis, June Maxwell of Temple, Laverne Pratt of Yorktown and
Dolores Strege of Kernersville, N.C.; five sons, Claude Phillips of Quito,
Ecuador, John Phillips of Greenwood, Ark., Leroy Phillips of Victoria, James
Phillips of League City and Kenneth Phillips of Stavanger, Norway; a brother,
Alva Cates of Russellville, Ark; 33 grandchilden; 51 great-grandchildren; and
14 great-great-grandchildren.
Services will be at 10 a.m. March 20 at Dobie Funeral Home. Graveside
services will be at 2 p.m., March 20 at Premont Cemetery, Premont.
My Eulogy, delivered 3/20/2001, at the funeral:
"I have the honor of being the second oldest grandchild.
On my way here today, I was thinking that as we go along through life, we are
as pebbles in a pond. We send out ripples from our movements. These ripples
can be great, sloushing waves or gentle waves. I like to think of Grandma as
sending out gentle, loving waves.
My earliest memories of Grandma revolve around awakening to the delicious
smells of bacon and pancakes coming from the kitchen in Premont. A short,
heavy-set woman cooking a meal for a large family and its visitors. Hugs that
smelled sweet and totally enveloped you.
Many times I sat with her, asking questions about our family -- what
nationalities are we? Where are we from?
Each question was answered with patience and filled with love.
She is entirely responsible for my recently developed love of the research of
the history of this family. Her request was simple, to find the grave of her
grandfather. Grandma, I haven't found it yet, but I will. That started me on
a crusade of finding out about our Cates and Phillips families history.
Since the beginning, I have met and corresponded with many new cousins and
found family members I didn't know existed.
I have traveled to Arkansas and felt the spirits of our ancestors. While
there, I wrote 5 poems. Feelings and words I never knew were inside me.
I owe this voyage to her.
I remember particularly her greatest lesson to me. The source of happiness:
Jesus first
Others second
Yourself last
She said that spelled joy, and I've never forgotten it.
On behalf of her other grandchildren, great, and great-great, I thank her for
being who she was -- a loving, patient woman who will always be my hero."