Edith Brons O’Connell

Edith Brons O’Connell
Wimberley Texas 06-04-1927 ~ 02-03-2012
Edith Brons O’Connell, 84, oldest child, born in Aberdeen, SD on June 4, 1927 to
Richard Benedict Brons and Meda Lee Brons died the evening of February 3, 2012
with her family at her bedside at Legend Oaks, in Kyle, Texas.

She is survived by her children: Michael (Lynda Kay) O’Connell of Helotes; Tom
(Frances) O’Connell of Harlingen; Lynn (Keith dec.) Herrin, Sharon (Mickey)
Uhlaender and Kathy O’Connell all living in Wimberley, Texas. Edith is the
grandmother to eight: Shawn O’Connell Prytula, Lesley O’Connell, Chris
O’Connell, Jennifer (Dirk) Webb, Damon (Trinity) O’Connell, Daniel (Jennifer)
Herrin, Chris (Erin) Uhlaender and Kylie Uhlaender. Edith is also the
great-grandmother to nine children. Edith was preceded in death by her parents,
her husband, her son Daniel, her sister Anne (Tom) Kane and her brother Tom
(Marianne) Brons. She is survived by her sisters Josephine (Jim) Wheeler of
Spring Branch, Anita (Norm, dec.) Jarke of San Antonio and Lorene (Guy) Baker of
Murrells Inlet, South Carolina.

In 1947 Edith married Donald A. O’Connell of Chicago and after their long
honeymoon trip to Texas among the blooming citrus groves of her uncle Fred and
aunt Pat Brons of Rio Hondo they fell in love with the Magic Valley and decided
to move and raise their family there.

Edith moved from Chicago to San Benito, Texas in 1951 where her husband with his
partner James Ward opened Ward-O’Connell Insurance Agency in San Benito, Texas.
Her father and mother, Richard and Meda Lee Brons had also moved to the Valley
at the urging of his brother Fred Brons, to open Richard’s Restaurant in
downtown Harlingen, Texas.

Edith was very active with The Catholic Church of the Lower Rio Grande Valley,
working with Most Reverend Mario S. Garriga, Bishop of Diocese of Corpus Christi
and later Bishop Marx first Bishop of the Diocese of Brownsville and the
establishment of the Diocese of Brownsville in 1965 by Pope Paul VI and later
with Bishop Humberto Medeiros and Bishop John J. Fitzpatrick. She was a founding
member of the National Council of Catholic Women in the Corpus Christi Diocese
and later in the formation of the NCCW in the Brownsville Diocese.

Edith and her husband were some of the founding parishioners with Father Joe
Sammons, OMI in building a new Catholic parish in San Benito, Our Lady Queen of
the Universe. In 1962 following her husband’s move to McAllen, Texas to manage
Flynn Insurance Agency, Edith and her family moved to McAllen and joined the
Parish of Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church. For many years she taught
Catholic Christian Doctrine and was later the first woman Administrator of a
Catholic Parish in the Brownsville Diocese at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic
Church where she was fondly known as “Meme”.

In 2008 she moved to Wimberley, Texas to be closer to her daughters and her
grandchildren. Edith had seven months of superb Hospice Care and a very caring
staff at Legend Oaks in Kyle, Texas. A Memorial Service celebrating her life was
held at Saint Anthony Marie Claret Catholic Church in Kyle.

Arrangements by Pennington Funeral Home, San Marcos, Texas, 512-353-4311. www.penningtonfuneralhome.com

Condolences are closed.

 Print This Obituary