JERELYN MERLE TAYLOR
1931-2017
Jerelyn Merle Taylor, 85, died on January 29, 2017 in the early morning at her home in Seven Acres Senior Care Facility where she had lived for the past six years. In spite of her declining health and foggy memory, she often showed glimpses of the wit and humor that were the trademarks of her personality! She was a full participant here and was always cheered by visitors.
Jerelyn was born on May 12, 1931 in Athens, TX. Her parents were Paralee Olivet (Warren) and Alfonso Bascom Taylor. She always emphasized that her father had been a cowboy before he married, implying that she found this fact inspiring!
She was preceded in death by her sister, June Taylor Horne, her parents and her brother, Benjamin Warren Taylor. She was also preceded in death by her beloved cats, Garbo and Gilbert. She is survived by her nephews and nieces Ben Taylor, Jr. (Deb), Brents Horne (Veronika), Harriet (Horne) Kelley (Jim), Betsy (Horne) Lock (John) and Cindy Taylor as well as numerous great- and greatgreat nephews and nieces. She is also survived by her sister-in-law, Sue Taylor and a host of friends who were truly her family.
She graduated from The University of North Texas in 1952 and began her teaching career with her sister, June. The two of them were always close and taught together in Pampa, then on to Midland High School where Jerelyn taught English. Her years in Midland were memorable for her as well as for her many students, many of whom stayed in touch with her and will say to this day “I never had a teacher like Miss Taylor.” She was known as challenging, fair, clever and inspiring.
After Midland, Jerelyn taught in Richardson, Texas before attending the University of Texas for graduate studies, receiving a Master’s Degree and working as an associate professor in the Education Department. After graduation, she moved to Houston and began her professional career as a writer, a media developer, producer and a curriculum developer for corporate training classes. She worked for many years at M.D. Anderson, often in partnership with film and media experts, developing educational materials and producing commercials and informative films for the American Cancer Society. She scripted and produced both locally- and nationallytelevised programming. Her last professional employment was at Houston Community College in their wide reaching training program, both within the college curriculum and in the corporate world. She was known to be a great interviewer and met many accomplished and visionary individuals for her different television productions.
Her sustaining affiliation was with the River Oaks Business Women’s Exchange Club which provided her with a social group, friends who were like family and a talented network of accomplished Houston women! She joined in 1978 and remained an honorary member at her death. She served as president in 1981 and later was named Member of the Year. She also was recognized by her many organizations including National Council for Marketing and Public Relations, Best Public Relations Campaign, LINK Award for Teleconference Production, Houston Community College Teaching Excellence Award. Her affiliations included: Association of Women Journalists, Passages Inc., Houston Ad Federation and the University of North Texas Gulf Coast Exes.
Jerelyn’s favorite activities included reading, crossword puzzles, Scrabble and gardening. She was also a huge sports fan, watching football (especially the Texans), baseball and golf. She took any chance to join others for travel. One of her favorite destinations was San Miguel de Allende to study Spanish but loved any Gulf of Mexico beach town. She collected curios, especially souvenirs and books from Mexico or cat chatzkies. She was a focused fan to specific luminaries including Greta Garbo, Bette Midler, Danny Kaye, Mark Twain and his humor! She often referred to her favorite song “Jeremiah was a Bullfrog.” Jerelyn enjoyed dining with friends, visiting with her family, theater, musical reviews and any good party! Jerelyn Taylor’s range of influence is wide and her admirers are legion. She will be missed.
Family and friends would like to acknowledge the wonderful staff at Seven Acres Senior Care Facility. Jerelyn received warm and wonderful care during her time there.
The family requests that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Passages, Inc. (Jerelyn served on the board for some time). Their address is 7722 Westview, Houston, TX 77055. Phone is 713-9574910.
A memorial service will be held for Jerelyn at 10:00 am on February 22, 2017 at Grace Community Church located at 1021 Campbell Road. The service will be officiated by Reverend Evelyn Cox. There will be opportunities to share your experiences and memories of Jerelyn and her life.