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Wednesday, October 13, 1999

Services held for Ingleside mother, daughter
Women killed in car accident near Sinton on Sunday while returning from family party
By Tracey Cooper
Caller-Times

Gutierrez

An Ingleside mother and daughter will be honored Thursday at a prayer service.
   Maria Gutierrez, 82, and Mary Lou Rodriguez, 48, were on their way home from celebrating a relative's 50th wedding anniversary when their car collided with another car, killing both women.
   The accident occurred around 12:10 a.m. Sunday. A 1994 Mercury Sable, driven by Rodriguez, was traveling south on U.S. Highway 77 about two miles south of Sinton, Department of Public Safety officials said. The Sable collided with a 1994 Jaguar, the DPS reported.

Rodriguez

   Gutierrez was thrown from the car, the DPS reported. Both women, who were wearing seatbelts, died at the scene, the DPS reported.
   The driver of the other car was not injured, DPS officials said.
   Rodriguez's husband, Jerry, 48,said he was supposed to go to the anniversary party with his wife and mother-in-law, but his brother died, and he left town to attend the funeral.
   He said his wife was a good person who always tried to help others.
   "She was like a sister to those who knew her," Rodriguez said. "She was a happy person. She walked in peace and joy. I am going to miss her."
   He said Gutierrez, who was born in Beeville and lived there for most of her life, was a quiet woman who was close to her daughter.
   Rodriguez said his faith in God has given him the strength to bear the grief of all three deaths.
   "All these things can destroy a person," he said. "I can sense that God has protected me. I feel at peace."
   Rodriguez said it was with his wife that he found his faith 24 years ago.
   After a year of marriage, he said they needed help and found God. For about 15 years, they have been members of the Word of God Church in Aransas Pass. Gutierrez also joined the church when she moved to the Rodriguez's home about three years ago because she was ill.
   As a church member, Mary Lou Rodriguez was in charge of hospitality. If someone was hurt, ill or grieving, she would make sure flowers and words of comfort arrived, said Steve Hale, school administrator for the church.
   Rodriguez taught kindergarten at the church school for two years until her mother became ill. Rodriguez also baby-sat neighborhood children and volunteered in the church nursery.
   "She's faithful," Hale said. "She was a Christian in the truest sense of the word. She loved her church very much."
   A prayer service for Rodriguez and Gutierrez is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at Charlie Marshall Funeral Home, Aransas Pass. Funeral services are at 2 p.m. Friday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Prairie View Cemetery.



Staff writer Tracey Cooper can be reached at 886-3779 or by e-mail at coopert@caller.com

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