Wilhelmina "Willie" Carlotte Derby

Wilhelmina “Willie” Carlotte Derby, born Coco passed away in the comfort of her home on Saturday, June 27, 2020.

Willie was born on January 14, 1926 in Lafayette, Louisiana to Pierre Filmore and Wilhelmina Carlotte (Steen) Coco. For the majority of her life she was a resident of Lake Charles, Louisiana, where in 1927, her family established Coco’s Shoe Store. Willie was a 1943 graduate of St. Charles Academy where she was honored to be the May Queen. Following her graduation, she attended McNeese Nursing School and New Orleans Charity Hospital Nursing School.

She was a member of St. Margaret of Scotland Catholic Church since the inception of the Parish in the Diocese of Lafayette, 75 years ago, where she was a member of the Altar Society and served as an eucharistic minister. She was often found cleaning the church on Saturday. Later in life her passion was serving the homebound and care facility residents. Willie was an avid mall walker and enjoyed meeting with her McDonald’s coffee group every morning.

She is preceded in death by her husband, Robert Walton Derby; her parents, Pierre Filmore and Wilhelmina Carlotte Coco; her sister, Irma Coco Johnson; her brother, Carl Steen Coco; and her son-in-law, Jimmy Burnett.

Survivors include her two daughters, Roberta Ann Burnett (Jimmy) and Theresa Ann Barnatt (James); 4 grandchildren: Walton Charles Burnett of Monroe, Stephanie Adele Newman (Alain) of Lake Charles, Claire Ann Hess (Robert) of Lake Charles, and Colleen Marie Kohrs (Nicholas) of New Orleans; and 6 great grandchildren.

Willie will be buried at Graceland Cemetery following a private family mass.