Our precious Momma, Emma Lou Burns Ross, joined our Lord on October 23, 2024. She was born in Saint Jo, Texas on December 23, 1935 where she grew up enjoying life and working at her parent’s grocery store, feed store, and pharmacy. She lived the majority of her life in Texas until Hurricane Harvey displaced her and Daddy to Mississippi in 2017, where they both lived until their deaths. She was the last of her family to join the circle in Heaven which included her parents and three siblings. Mom’s life was strongly rooted in Christian values and this never changed regardless of her situation.
On August 1, 1952, she married Curtis Ira Ross (1932-2018) and after 65 years of marriage, Daddy passed away. She never failed to say how grateful she was to have had him so long and knew she would be with him again. In their years together, they raised three children including James Curtis Ross (wife, Tanaleah), Emma Catherine Linney (husband, John) and Gwendolyn Kaye Herndon (husband, Bill). As life moved forward Momma and Daddy were an active part of the lives of nine grandchildren and 17 great grandchildren. Our Momma was lovingly known as Monna to her grandchildren.
Momma was a gifted and brilliant woman with a consistently kind manner and quick wit. She could sew, paint, and make anything. She was also a skilled pianist and shared her talent with her church for decades as well as singing in a gospel quartet. She worked outside our home as we grew up and was a skilled numbers person. She loved telling us about working in the pharmacy that had a fountain and how she became master at making milkshakes. She was later employed by the phone company for years and then moved on to manage the office of a physician until she retired. After retiring, she raised prize winning dairy goats. Without a thought this cute petite woman thought nothing of hauling a load of goats to a show and would back up a trailer with ease. She did this often due to Daddy’s work schedule.
Momma was a physically beautiful woman but her outer beauty paled to that what was within. She was kind and gentle and always had a hug or kind word for you when needed. She was not a pushover but her battles were fought rather quietly and she tended to outsmart you. Her gentle nature often revealed itself in her love for animals of any kind. We could bring her birds that had fallen from nests, bunnies that had almost been run over by the mower or most uniquely, a baby squirrel from a felled tree that was no more than three-inches as it rested in her palm. She raised that baby squirrel until he was four-years-old and he was her buddy. There was never a cat or a dog that wandered up to their Blissmoor Farm that she would not take in and love.
Our Momma was the ‘rock of this family’ and possessed an amazing ability to forgive. She always found the positive in every situation and it was rare that her cup was not half full. We will miss our special Mother but are proud she is with the Lord. She meant it when she would say “the Lord be with you ‘til we meet again” and indeed we will see her again.
Funeral Services will be held at 1 PM on Saturday, October 26, 2024 at Cleveland Moffett Funeral Home in Amory with Bro. Mark Robbins officiating. A graveside service will follow at 3 PM in the New Hope Church Cemetery in Starkville, MS. Pallbearers will be Chris Ross, Cary “Trey” Herndon, Jamie Kubena, Nathan Herndon, Ryan Ross and Matthew Herndon.
Visitation will be held prior to the service on Saturday from 11 AM until 12:45 PM.
