Wanda Rhodes

Wanda Lanell Rhodes, age 80, went to be with her Lord on Saturday, February 29, 2020 surrounded by her loving family. A time for the family to receive friends will be Wednesday, March 4, 2020 from 5 – 7 pm at Cozart Funeral Home in Normangee. Funeral services will be Thursday, March 5, 2020 at 11:00 am at Sand Prairie Baptist Church in the George Community with Rev. Larry Andrews, pastor officiating.
Wanda was born in Houston November 13, 1939 to C.T. and Frances (Williams) Little. She grew up in the Rio Grande Valley and Houston, eventually moving to Bryan and went on to Nursing School where she completed her nursing degree in 1970. She married the love of her life Charles Rhodes in 1986 and they resided in North Zulch until his passing in 2018. She was also preceded in death by her parents, a brother Bobby Ray Rogers, two step sons Marty and Bobby Rhodes and a great granddaughter Lyla Hope Palermo.
Wanda was very passionate about the things she deeply loved. Her love for the Lord, her family especially her children and grandchildren. She was affectionately known as “MeeMaw” and being the cool grandmother that would protect and defend all those she loved like a “Momma bear”. You could definitely hear her voice ringing out on the baseball fields when her grandchildren were playing.
She had a knack for decorating and making anything look amazing. Every home she lived in looked like a bed and breakfast. MeeMaw cooked with passion without a recipe and that came in handy with limited resources. MeeMaw could make ANYTHING taste good. That was one of the attributes that PawPaw Charlie really loved. If you visited her, you were always given the opportunity to be fed.
Her love for others showed in the career she chose. She put herself through nursing school and got her nursing license in 1970. The majority of her nursing career was spent assisting doctors in bringing babies into the world and culminated by ministering to the elderly in their last days with her last job in the nursing homes. Ironically, during the time she was a patient in the nursing homes, she still was “at work”. She was a nurse through and through from the beginning to the end.
Wanda and Charlie put their final roots into Sand Prairie Baptist Church where they were faithful members who loved and were dearly loved by their church family. If the doors of the church were open, they were there showing their commitment and love for Christ.
Wanda is survived by two daughters, Mary Sanders of Bryan, Monica and husband David Jones of Magnolia, two sons, Allen and wife Dena Palermo of Bryan and Todd Palermo of Bayview, as well as two step daughters Charla Busa of Richards and Cheryl and husband Floyd Burzynski of Stoneham, and step son Mike Palermo of Caldwell. She also leaves behind her ten grandchildren Lance and wife Julia Czajkowski, Brent and wife Leigh Ann Palermo, Blake Czajkowski, Matt and wife Larra Palermo, Jordan and wife Meagan Jones, Caitlyn and husband Tyler Grygar, Grant Sanders, Annette Palermo, Ashlyn Palermo and Avery Palermo as well as her seven great grandchildren, nine step grandchildren and twelve step great grandchildren. Others left behind to mourn her loss are her two brothers Walter and wife Ardith Rogers of Bedias, Jerry and wife Sharon Little of Mobile, Al and a sister Sharon and husband Michael Jeffries of North Zulch.

Wanda loved flowers but if you prefer to make a donation, it can be made to Sand Prairie Baptist Church, P.O. Box 100, North Zulch, Tx. 77872