Shirley Louella Berry's Obituary
Shirley Louella Berry was born on December 9, 1946 and peacefully passed from this world on February 17, 2024 at her home surrounded by loved ones. Shirley was born in Beaumont, Texas to Curtis and Jean Bell where she was the third oldest of 7 siblings. From the beginning, she was always keeping everyone on their toes. As a headstrong little girl, she consistently cried when having her picture taken, never thought she was wrong nor would ever consider backing down from an argument and was very mischievous. All qualities fine-tuned and then passed them on to her nieces.
I could talk about what she did with her life after graduating from Hallsville school, but if we are honest, no one really cares about that. They say the love is in the details and that is where Shirley lived as the important aspects of her life were her family and friends. On August 5th she had her son, Link, who she was always so very proud of. Her love for him grew when Link married his wife, Holly. Her love knew no limits and she went above and beyond to make sure you felt it.
You can’t talk about love without mentioning what happened 36 years ago. That’s when she met the love of her life, Timothy Berry, on a blind date. She described Tim as “ so charming and very handsome” and he stated that he loved her laugh and smile, but honestly, I think it was her legs that sealed the deal for him. So, on November 23, 1990, they both took off work early, went to the JP’s office, and made their commitment official. Shirely used this to her advantage and would never consider passing up an anniversary, or any other occasion for that matter, to shower herself with a special piece of jewelry that she just KNEW Tim would want her to have!
She was a huge animal lover to her core. She once had a tiny white toy poodle named “Penny” that was always dolled up. From dresses with ruffles and matching bows on her ears to coordinating nail polish and collars with shimmery stones. To this day, she shared her home (and bank account) with “the girls”. Sue, Maggie (aka puppy), Monkey and last, but not least, her 22 year old schnauzer, Sophie were never far from her side . The girls were a very big and special part of her life and they miss her dearly. They are coping with the massive void that she left in their lives as we all are.
Lastly, Shirley told it like it was and really was a “no-nonsense” kind of gal. We will miss her contagious laugh, her quirky sense of humor that was always dripping in sarcasm, and her love of jewelry, red lipstick and Amazon! She stated that she wasn’t paying for a funeral for people to see her if they didn’t care enough to visit her while she was alive (that’s Shirley for you) so, we are honoring that request. Those who are left here to mourn her are her loving husband, Tim Berry of Longview; son, Link Landers and daughter- in-love, Holly of Tyler; his son Caleb Landers and great granddaughter Amara of Longview; stepdaughter Misty Berry of Longview, and her sons Trey, Taylor and Tyler Willett; and granddaughter Layla; sister Barbara Tolar and husband Gene of Hallsville, their children Stephen Tolar of Hallsville and Denise Hill of Overton; brother Jackie Bell and wife Carrie of Longview, their sons Jason Bell and Jared Bell of Longview; brother Timothy Bell of Houston and his son Jesse Bell and daughter Sydnie; sister in law Vicki Bell and their children David Bell , Melissa Bell and Lily Bell of Houston, Daughters of Curtis Ray Bell Brandy Maxwell and husband Cain of Anna and Audrey Pace of Longview, nieces Laura Ormond of Little Rock, Christy Bundick, and Ada Bundick of Hallsville along with many great nieces and nephews, cousins, and close friends.
Those who lovingly awaited her in heaven were her parents Curtis and Jean Bell, brothers Curtis Ray Bell and Randy Bell, her sister Alice Faye Bell, and stepdaughter Talyah Hernandez.
We would like to send a special thank you to Accent Care Hospice and Palliative Care for the compassion, love, and care that you showed to Shirely. Each of you truly made an impact on us and we cannot thank you enough for all you did during our time together. Samantha, Elizabeth, Valshia, and Courtney- thank you so much for being there and walking us through this chapter. Each of you made this difficult process a little less painful. And to her caregiver, Melissa McPherson, thank you just isn’t enough. The love, support, and companionship that you showed Shirely is second to none. She loved you and I cannot adequately describe how much we appreciate the support you gave Tim, Shirely, Link, Holly, Barbara, and especially the girls.
In lieu of flowers, we ask that you make a donation to a charity of your choice in her name.
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