Mary Lu Waddell

Mary Lu Waddell passed away peacefully on April 5, 2025, in San Angelo, Texas, just shy of her 95th birthday. She was born on April 17, 1930, in Pauls Valley, Oklahoma, to Earl and Mary Romine.

As a young girl during the Great Depression, Mary Lu and her family were part of the migration to California, settling first in the Central Valley and later in the East San Francisco Bay Area, including Castro Valley and Hayward. Though California was home for much of her early life, the family moved often, including time spent in Trent, Texas, and Ruidoso, New Mexico, where Mary Lu graduated from high school.

She went on to attend Abilene Christian College, where she met the love of her life, Freddy Jack Waddell of Roby, Texas. The two married in 1950 and shared a deep, enduring love throughout their 64 years of marriage, until Freddy’s passing in August 2014.

Mary Lu was devoted to her family above all else. She cherished her parents and her siblings, Don and Rena, and held dear her many aunts, uncles, and cousins. She was a loving mother to her three sons—Stephen, Daniel, and Rick—a proud grandmother to Sarah and Lindsay, and a joyful great-grandmother to Soren, Corbin, and Leddy.

She and Freddy raised their family with love and intention, beginning in Fisher County, Texas, then moving to Orange County, California. In 1957, they settled in Oakhurst, California, near Yosemite National Park—a place they all considered their heart’s home. They also lived in Idaho and Denton, Texas, where she supported Freddy as he pursued his doctorate. They spent nearly twenty years in Beaumont, Texas, before retiring to Oak Hill, Texas, where Mary Lu found joy in the home of her dreams. In her final years, she resided at the Buckner Baptist Retirement Community in San Angelo.

A woman of deep faith, Mary Lu lived her life as a devoted Christian. She was known for her gentle spirit, kind heart, and quiet strength. She never spoke in anger and gave endlessly of her love to those around her. Her devotion to her husband and family remained steadfast until the very end.

Mary Lu is now joyfully reunited with her beloved Freddy, her parents, her son Danny, and her extended family in Heaven.

She is survived by her two sons, Stephen and his wife Cheryl of Flower Mound, Texas, and Rick and his wife Carol of San Angelo, Texas; her sister, Rena Herron of Everett, WA and brother Don Romine of Torrington, WY; her granddaughters, Sarah and husband, Glen, of Tacoma, Washington, and Lindsay and husband, Caden, of San Angelo, Texas; and her great-grandchildren, Soren, Corbin, and Leddy.