Source: http://obit.guinn-horger.com/obit_display.cgi?id=389601&listing=All
GRISHAM
Essie Mae Grisham went to be with the Lord on Sunday, March 11, 2007 at the age of 96.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 44 years, G.C. ``Buck'' Grisham, her sister, Lena Luedecke Rutkowski, brother, Carl Bell, nephew, John Luedecke and wife, Lillian Luedecke.
Essie and Buck owned the Grisham's Superette in Hondo, TX. She was a Mary Kay Cosmetics salesperson for many years. She was a founding member of the Hondo chapter of AARP. Essie resided at New Forest Estates Retirement Community for 15 years. She began the Senior Aerobics Program. She faithfully instructed the class 4 days a week for 11 years until she was 94. She was a member of First United Methodist Church in Hondo and Jefferson United Methodist Church in San Antonio.
She was born December 6, 1910, the daughter of John & Delia (Hooker) Bell.
She is survived by niece, Dorothy Mott: nephews, Ernest Luedecke and Elroy Luedecke; great nieces, DeNette Krawczynski, Karen Johnson, Cheryl Brammell, Shirley Canon; great nephews Clifton Luedecke, Gary Mott, Mark Mott, Ronald Luedecke, and Gregory Luedecke, and numerous great, great nieces and nephews, and many friends. Essie has been an inspiration to all who knew her. She will be remembered for her giving and caring nature.
Visitation will be held from 4-6 pm on Saturday, March 17th at Guinn-Horger Funeral Home, Hondo, TX. Funeral Services will be held at First United Methodist Church in Hondo on Sunday, March 18th at 2:00 pm. The casket carriers were Gary Mott, Mike Krawczynski, Steve Johnson, Elroy Luedecke, Mark Mott, Jack Brammell. Interment will follow at Oakwood Cemetery, Hondo, TX. Memorials may be made to Vitas Hospice Charitable Fund, 5430 Fredericksburg Rd., Suite 200. San Antonio, TX 78229 or Jefferson Untied Methodist Church, 748 Donaldson Ave. San Antonio, TX 78201.
A Memorial Service celebrating Essie Mae's wonderful life will be held at New Forest Estates Assisted Living, 5034 New Forest, San Antonio, Texas on Monday, March 19, 2007 at 2:00 p.m.
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Extracted from The San Antonio Express-News (San Antonio, TX)
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Ex-grocer Grisham kept exercising into her 90s
by Carmina Danini
Express-News Staff Writer
Debunking the adage that older people lack the energy to exercise, Essie Mae Grisham began a senior aerobics program at a San Antonio retirement community when she was nearly 80.
The former grocery store owner, who died March 11 of heart failure, taught the class four days a week for 15 years, finally giving in to age two years ago, when she was 94.
``She was pretty active until she broke her hip. Nothing was the same after that,'' said Ernest Luedecke, a nephew.
Grisham and her late husband, G.C. ``Buck'' Grisham, owned and operated Grisham's Superette in Hondo for more than 30 years.
According to a 1960 article in an industry publication, the Grishams ``started with a little country store to which they kept adding through the years.''
The store was housed in a wood frame building that was previously the home of the Hondo Anvil Herald, a weekly publication founded more than 100 years ago. The Superette moved to a new building in 1959, when ``about 500 people visited the store on its first business day,'' the publication said.
Grisham and her husband sold the store in the early 1980s.
A founding member of the AARP chapter in Hondo, Grisham also sold Mary Kay Cosmetics for many years.
She never drove a pink Cadillac, given to top salespeople, because she was partial to Oldsmobiles, preferably red.
A friend of Mary Kay Ash, the Hot Wells-born founder of the cosmetics line, Grisham was invited to Ash's funeral in 2001 by her family.
Though the Grishams didn't have any children, Essie Mae Grisham helped her sister raise her five children.
After her sister stopped cooking for the family, Grisham took over preparation of meals for family get-togethers.
``Her dumplings became the staple meal for the family,'' said Shirley Canon, a great-niece.
The Christmas holidays would also find Grisham in the kitchen, baking treats, from banana nut bread to honey squares, that she gave to family members.
``She was a great cook,'' Canon said.