BELIA “BILLIE” VERETTE

January 12, 1934 - March 27, 2022 Belia “Billie” Verette was a caring and loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and friend.

She left this world to be with her Lord and Savior on March 27, 2022, at the age of 88. She was born on January 12, 1934, in Ramirez, Texas to Antonio & Jesusa Garibaldi. Belia was preceded in death by her parents; brother, Raul Garibaldi; and sisters, Adelina Pasillas and Mary Cortez; her devoted husband of 54 years Jim Verette and great grandchild, Wyatt Schorn. She is survived by her loving daughters, Yvette (Robert) Berry, Darlene (John) Van Dyke, and Colette (Tony) Kelso; brother Raul Garibaldi, and sister Gloria Guerrero. She will be greatly missed by all of her grandchildren: Carly Berry (fiancé Tyler Abels), Brenna Berry (fiancé Cole Sargent), Connor Berry, Blake Berry, Katelyn (Adam) Schorn, Cameron Kelso, Colin Kelso, Taylin Van Dyke and Joshua (Vanessa) Van Dyke; and great-grandchildren: Tylee Van Dyke, Corrine Van Dyke, Sailor Van Dyke and many other children and grandchildren who adopted her as their “Mee Maw Billie”.

She graduated from Edison High School in 1953 in San Antonio, Texas. She was a student athlete in Volleyball, Softball, Pep Squad and Choir. She attended San Antonio College and worked at USAA as a computer processor for 6 years. She married her loving husband, Jim Verette, at St. Ann’s Catholic Church on June 5, 1960, in San Antonio, Texas. She was a proud wife to an Air Force Senior Master Sergeant. During his active duty they were stationed at McLaughlin AFB, Randolph AFB, Langley AFB, Bergstrom AFB, as well as their most memorable Hahn AFB in Germany. While stationed there for 3 years, they had the opportunity to travel to France, Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Austria. Some of their dearest friends were met while in Germany and continued to remain in touch over the years. She and her husband, in their later years, traveled to France, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Monaco, and back to Germany. Her favorite destination was Hawaii and traveled there 7 times! They were married for 54 beautiful and full years until his death in June 2014.

She was a wonderful, giving, loving and beautiful mother who worked tirelessly in raising her daughters. Her daughters felt immensely fortunate and blessed to have had such a giving, selfless, and courageous mother. She loved to garden, took pride in her yard, and won many neighborhood beautification awards throughout the years. She was especially proud of continuing the lineage of her rose bushes given to her by her mother. These rose bushes have been thriving for over 60 years and will continue to grow with the next generation. She loved her date nights with Jim when they would go to dinner and a movie every week. She took pride and loved to surround herself with all of her beautiful grandchildren, great grandchildren, and “adopted” grandchildren while cooking their favorite dishes. She loved baking cookies and other sweet treats for everyone she met. She and her husband were loyal football season ticket holders for the Judson High School Rockets for almost 40 years and was also a big fan of the San Antonio Spurs. She always had a smile and giving heart for everyone she met. We will love and cherish her forever and we will greatly miss her smile and loving heart.

Our family would like to offer our deepest gratitude to Belia’s compassionate caregiver and friend, Marta Moss, who devoted the past 8 years to our mother’s care and wellbeing. We will forever be indebted to Marta for the love shown to our mother. We also like to thank Brooke Army Medical Center for the years of care and compassion they showed to her and our family. The family is looking forward to celebrating the life of Belia Verette surrounded by all of her friends and family.