Martha Gene Stroud

Martha Gene Thomason Stroud, 84 died on 18 September 2012 in her home in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Born in Shreveport, Louisiana on 11 August 1928, to Ernest M. and Laura Viola Fletcher Thomason, Martha was raised in the Shreveport Mangham, Louisiana area. She was a graduate of Byrd High School and attended college Texas State College for Women in Denton, Texas.

Martha lived in Elton, Louisiana for over 50 years with her late husband, Wallace Jerome Stroud Jr.. She served as a den mother in the Cub Scouts and was an active supporter of the local Boy Scout troop, taking great pride in the fact that each of her sons achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. Martha was a faithful, active member of First United Methodist Church in Elton. She designed and prepared the altar flower arrangements for her church for many years and was active in numerous UMW groups.

Martha was a dedicated homemaker. She was well known to all for her bread-making skills, which she willingly shared with all who asked. She had a passion for gardening roses, butterfly and hummingbird gardening, delighting in God's gifts through nature. She was also very talented in needlework. Martha made hand sewn baby clothes, tatted, and also made beautiful pieces of needlepoint for her family and friends.

Martha was an active member of the Elton community and a friend to all in the area and will be missed by all the great people she interacted with over the years.

Martha is preceded in death by her parents Ernest and Laura Thomason of Mangham, LA; her brothers Ernest Miller, Jr., Louis Bennie, and Edward Ray Thomason; and her husband of over 60 years, Wallace J. Stroud, Jr. Those left to cherish her memory are her two sons, Wallace Jerome (Jerry) Stroud III and wife Loyce of Sulphur and Tom Stroud and wife Lynne of Houston; one daughter, Emily Rentrop and husband David of Lake Charles; grandchildren, Jeremy Stroud and wife Brandy, Ben Stroud and wife Jenny, Karl, Sean and Lauren Stroud and Scott and Sarah Rentrop; one great grandchild, Kori ; one sister-in-law Chris Thomason of Vienna, Austria, and five very special nieces.

Memorial services will be held at 3:00 PM on Sunday September 23, 2012 at First United Methodist Church in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Visitation will be at the church from 1:00 PM until service time.

The family would like to express their grateful appreciation for the compassionate care given their mother by Heart of Hospice and her personal caregivers, Tracy Francis and Pam Davis.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Louisiana Methodist Children's Home, http://www.lmch.org/