Obituaries

January 10, 1927 - December 26,2023

Pearl, age 96, of Trent made her journey to heaven to rejoin her passed family members on the morning of December 26, 2023. She was born in Mulberry Canyon to William C. Matthews and Eula Pearl Dowdy on January 10, 1927. Pearl graduated from Trent High School but attended several other schools including IXL, Merkel, White Flat, Sweetwater, Gail Business College, HardinSimmons University and TSTC. Pearl had fond memories of her school friends and enjoyed reminiscing of those days and the time her team got to compete in the state basketball tournament. Pearl worked as a phone operator in Trent, as a secretary for South Junior High and as a stenographer for Texaco in Wichita Falls. She worked for the Trent bank on two separate occasions, the first time as a bookkeeper and the second time for 10 years as a teller. She also enjoyed her early days of plowing in the field with her father, being a wife and mother, and working along with her husband Vertis on his many projects. Pearl and Vertis were married on June 30, 1962, and one of their greatest joys was the time they spent together running roller skating rinks where they enjoyed skating, teaching, and seeing everyone have fun. She loved to tell stories of those days. She was a very special person and a strong Christian woman that greatly enjoyed playing the piano and singing for, and, along with her fellow Christian family. She was a member of the First Baptist Church in Trent for many years and always said she had a friend in Jesus. Her favorite scripture she recited often was “I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me”, Philippians 4:13, and then she kept on going. Pearl had many interests that kept her busy. She enjoyed crafts, playing games on her I-pad and working on her computer to make her own cards to send to friends and family. She loved life and wanted to be a blessing to anyone she saw. It always made her day if she could just make someone smile or laugh and she always got a kick out of reminding everyone that she was “Pearl, the pain in the oyster’s side!”. She loved her family dearly and supported them in any way she could. She was preceded in death by her parents, brothers Odger, Floyd and Lloyd and by her husband Vertis. She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Darla and Kevin Spiers of Austin and Mystyk the cat whom she spoiled rotten. Visitation will be Friday, December 29 th at Starbuck Funeral Home in Merkel from 5pm to 7pm. Funeral services will be Saturday, December 30 th at Starbuck Funeral Home at 2pm with Richard Beaver of the Trent Church of Christ officiating. Burial will follow at Rose Hill Cemetery in Merkel. In lieu of flowers, memorials to honor Pearl’s life may be made to a charity of your choosing. A very special thank you to Belinda, Nesa, and the staff of Home Instead and Mesa Springs for all the loving care you provided and thank you to family and friends for honoring Pearl as her pallbearers.

Jerry Wayne Rozzlle, 82, of Blackwell, Texas, passed away at his residence Friday, December 29, 2023. Jerry will lie in state at the Blackwell Methodist Church Tuesday, December 2, 2023 from 10 A.M. until service time and the family will receive friends and have visitation from 5 to 7 P.M Tuesday evening. Funeral services will be 11:00 A.M. Wednesday, January 3, 2024 at the First Methodist Church in Blackwell, TX. Interment will follow in the Blackwell Cemetery directed by McCoy Funeral Home.