STELLA COTTRELL
1924-2017
Stella Cottrell nee Cruz, a Houston entrepreneur and leader for more than 50 years in the international travel industry, passed away peacefully at home Sunday evening, February 12, 2017, in the care of nieces and loved ones. A native Houstonian, Stella broke new ground in the 1960s, not only as one of Houston’s most successful woman business owners, but also as a Latina. Throughout her life, Stella converted her success into generosity for family, friends, faith-based organizations, and her community. She was a devout Catholic and “behind-the-scene” philanthropist who zeroed in on individuals (including near-strangers) whose lives could be turned around with a bit of well-timed financial help. She created countless opportunities for others by hiring and mentoring young people, networking, and establishing scholarships. Stella delighted in babies and children, and they in her. Her agency, Stella Cottrell Travel, Inc., arranged national and international travel for high-profile Houston-based law firms, financial institutions, and energy companies as well as foreign diplomats, clergy and cardinals of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, and news teams for a local broadcast station. She was frequently recognized by airlines, tour companies, industry associations, and cruise lines for her industry leadership and remembered for her personalized service and attention to detail. In 1961, Stella married Simon L. Cottrell, trade commissioner for the French consulate in Houston, and the couple frequently hosted and entertained international travelers and spent time in Martinique, where Simon was born. An ardent supporter of quality education, Stella established a scholarship in her husband’s name at the University of St. Thomas in Houston to promote international and intercultural understanding. A world traveler, Stella was fluent in three languages. She maintained her travel agency, remarkable ability to remember all things numerical and family stories, her deep devotion to family, faith, compassion for others, and wit until her death.
She will be deeply missed by all who knew her and enjoyed her extraordinary vitality, hospitality, faith, and optimism. Stella is preceded in death by her husband, Simone L. Cottrell of Houston; her sisters, Celia Kimball nee Cruz and Ophelia Tully nee Cruz, both of Houston; and brothers Charles Cruz and Rudy (Teresa) Cruz of Cerritos. She is survived by a half-sister, half brother, grandsons, numerous nieces and nephews, and many friends and loved ones. The family is deeply grateful to Maria Socorro Martinez, Mary Ann Guerrero, Sara Campos, Catalina Delgado, and Sheryl Bonin for their assistance and extraordinary care of Stella. Friends are cordially invited to a visitation on Thursday, February 16, 2017 from five o’clock in the evening to seven o’clock at Bradshaw-Carter, 1734 West Alabama Street, Houston, Texas 77098. A mass of Christian burial will be celebrated on Friday, February 17, at ten in the morning at St. Anne Catholic Church, 2140 Westheimer Road, Houston, Texas 77098. Pallbearers will be Randall Baker, Sean Baker, Erik Baker, Seth Lawrence, Victor Guerrero Sr., Clay Moore. Honorary pallbearers are Ernest Lawrence, and Drs. Francisco Fuentes, Phillip Johnson, and Michele Johnson. The family requests memorial gifts in Stella’s honor be made to breast cancer research or St. Dominic Village in Houston. Online tributes may be posted at Bradshaw-Carter.