Florence Chambers, 91, of Beaumont died Sunday, May 2, 2004 at Memorial Hermann Baptist Hospital.
Funeral services will be 2:00 p.m. Wednesday, May 5, at Broussard’s, 2000 McFaddin, Beaumont with burial to follow at Magnolia Cemetery. Visitation will be from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Tuesday evening, May 4, at the mortuary.
Florence was born in Beaumont, Texas at 960 North Street in a small white Victorian cottage, to Edith Fuller Chambers and Charles Homer Chambers on October 8, 1912. When she was fourteen months old the family moved to Calder Avenue in February 1914 where she has lived to the present time. Her sister, who was ten years older, was Jennie Ruth Chambers with whom she lived until Jennie’s death in 1989.
Florence attended Averil School, North End Junior High School (Dick Dowling), Beaumont High School where she graduated in 1928. Her class was the first class to graduate in the new Beaumont City Hall. She attended Randolf Macon School for Girls in Danville, Virginia; Westmoreland College in San Antonio, Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, where she received her B.A. Degree in History and minored in Education receiving a permanent teachers certificate in 1933. After graduating from college she studied art with Miss Minnie Jones in Beaumont, Texas for ten years.
In World War II she did extensive work with her sister, Ruth, who was chairman of the layette, kit bag and bathrobe committees for the Beaumont American Red Cross Chapter. Later she served on the board of the Beaumont Red Cross for two terms. They also worked with the Beaumont Day Nursery being asked to purchase all of their Christmas presents.
Florence joined The First Methodist Episcopal Church South (now First United Methodist Church of Beaumont) at any early age, attending Sunday School and church.
With her family she spent many summers at the beach having lost two houses to storms, one at Rollover in 1915 and another at Caplen in 1963 by hurricane Carla. She loved the beach activities - swimming, fishing, crabbing and beach combing. She spent many happy days fishing on Galveston Bay aboard her father’s Cris Craft Cruise.
She is survived by her friends, Wanda Pauler and Kay Smith, caregiver B. J. Kibodeaux
and cousins.
In lieu of flowers, you may send donations to The Humane Society of Southeast Texas,
P. O. Box 1629, Beaumont, Texas 77704.