Wyona Fay Tucker returned home to the Lord after a peaceful passing on Sunday evening, September 1, 2024, just one month after celebrating her 91st year on this earth. That Saturday, the day before she passed, blessed nearby family and friends with the opportunity to gather, interact with her as she silently (but emphatically), let everyone know how much she loved them.

Wyona was born July 29, 1933, in Woodlake, Texas to Ernest Walter Beavers and Mellie May Diggs. The ever-adored, youngest child of 5, she entered a family of four older sisters, all of whom grew up amidst farm life, in a home lovingly built by their father. Her sister Dorothy (Dot) says Wyona did not have to have chores or work like the rest of the girls, she was always pulled everywhere in a wagon, and says she probably didn't even walk until she was 8 or 9. She would say spoiled, spoiled, spoiled by them all.

Wyona attended both primary and secondary school in Groveton, Texas, eventually graduating as a proud, flag-bearing member of Groveton High School's class of 1951. Following graduation, she and her mother moved to Houston where Wyona soon began working for The Houston Casket Company. Ultimately, she met the absolute love of her life and future husband, Billie Jack (BJ) Tucker, while attending church at Park Place Methodist Church. It was a community in which he and his family were heavily entrenched, and Wyona fit right in. Approximately two years down the road, the pair tied the knot at the very same church. Wyona was 20 and BJ was 25.

Wyona was welcomed into the Tucker home of four boys and what I am told was an endless supply of people coming and going. I have heard it said that not a night went by when her father-in-law did not bring someone home for dinner, always welcomed and accommodated, never a dull evening. Wyona rapidly became a part of that family unit and would always look back on those days with great fondness, as an irrepressible, giant smile danced across her face. Not only had she expanded her family, but she would also form lifelong friendships initiated during this time.

After BJ obtained his bachelor's from the University of Houston, he and his father opened the Willie Tucker & Son Insurance Agency. Wyona would later come on board, following her post-secondary insurance schooling and licensing.

Guided/driven/catapult/bolstered/blessed with natural people skills and wonderfully complementary talents/skillsets, the pair went on to successfully run the insurance company until they retired in 2002.

It could be said without hesitation, BJ and Wyona lived life to the fullest. They loved to travel, read, and smoke! And boy did they smoke! They smoked like no one I have ever seen, lighting one cigarette right off the one before it.  But also, like no one I've ever seen, when they suddenly decided it was time to quit, they did, simple as that, never to light up again. BJ and Wyona were also enthusiastic consumers of music, comedy, art, food, and drink.  Additionally, Wyona was a great cook. And I think she was a quick study in the ever-buzzing kitchen of her mother-in-law, Mozelle Tucker.

Not only in business but also in life, BJ and Wyona were passed the familial torch and what were once large Sunday dinners after church turned into a late breakfast at BJ and Wyona's, following the early 7 AM service. Wyona served the very best breakfast, highlighted by her eggs so fluffy and creamy. Ask the chef her secret? She would say butter and low heat.

When BJ got older and was increasingly needing help, Wyona wholeheartedly undertook a new adventure, regular strength training. A goal in sight, she started going to the YMCA in La Porte on a routine basis. There she was blessed to not only find a great trainer but also a great friend. And she became physically strong. Over time, Wyona would develop the capacity to leg press something like 550 lbs! After BJ passed away in 2011, heartbroken but undeterred, she kept up weight training and water aerobics, developed new friends and a sense of community at the YMCA.  Wyona soon began traveling again with her new friends and they took trips all over the country by bus and plane, not to mention just good ol' fashioned car trips.  Once, at the spur of the moment, she even drove with family to Missouri to witness a solar eclipse. This was not uncharacteristic of a Wyona, she simply loved to get out and see things, meet people, and learn new things. That was living.

In later years, as Wyona began to feel her age and require some help, she enlisted her trainer's son, Jeff, to assist her with her finances and things around the house. Well, over the last 5 years they became the best of friends and shared many adventures together closer to home, including trips to Rockport and Galveston. Eventually, Wyona also enlisted her neighbor's daughter-in-law, Ana, to help when Jeff was not around. In a short amount of time this trio became a crew. Thank God for those two! They helped Wyona not only with daily life around the house but also with transportation to appointments, to parties, and during her move to Brazos Tower adult living community in the fall of 2022. But most significant of all, they loved her, and she loved them, their lives forever-impacted by the unlikeliest of friendships. Her independent spirit, zest for life, clever wit and bold personality never diminished.

Wyona is survived by her only living sister Dorothy Beavers Lewing of Rockdale, TX, and her three sisters-in-law: Diane Tucker of Houston Tx., Bonnie Tucker of Wildwood, Mo., and Evelyn Leavens of Seabrook, Tx.  We count about two dozen nieces and nephews, and even more great and great, great nieces and nephews.

A celebration of Wyona's life will be held at Peevey Funeral Home 12440 Beamer Rd. Houston Tx 77089, Saturday, September 14, 2024, at 11:00am., with visitation one hour prior to the service, officiated by Reverand Dr. Will Reed. Interment will follow at Forest Park Lawndale Cemetery, 6900 Lawndale St, Houston, Texas 77023.