Vena Mae Hood

Vena Mae Hood, 85, passed away peacefully at home with her family by her side…the only way she would have it on Sunday, August 14, 2011.
Vena was born on January 17, 1926 in Childress, Texas to Virgil and Vera Woodman.  She moved to Donna, Texas from Childress at the age of 10 and married her best friend and soul mate, Clifford Hood, on June 6, 1944 upon graduating from Donna High School.
Vena and Clifford moved to Harlingen with their two children, Cissie and Kelley in 1951.  She was very active in the Stuart Place Garden Club and she LOVED her beautiful gardens and flowers.  Even until her death, she would get upset witHarlingenh anyone who tried to prune back her gardens….the bigger and brighter the more beautiful!  She took much pride in being stylish, from her beautiful dresses, hats, and shoes to her perfectly manicured nails…always the fashion statement.
Vena for many years worked at Lila Jean’s Dress Shop in Harlingen.  She was a member and a Sunday school teacher of the First Christian Church in Donna and the First Presbyterian Church in Harlingen and also attended with family the First Presbyterian Church in San Benito.
Before Clifford’s untimely death 28 years ago, he and Vena frequently traveled to Colorado where they eventually purchased acreage and built a quaint log cabin.  This was to be their place of retirement…daily basking in God’s beauty was both their dream.  This dream never did come to fruition, but her family knows they are now together in an even more beautiful part of God’s country!
Vena is survived by her son, Kelley Hood and his wife, Sandra; daughter, Cissie NeSmith and her husband Tom; grandchildren, Tiffaney (Charlie) Kennedy, Clint (Kylie) Hood, and Natalie (Jesse) Volz; and 3 great-grandchildren, Mae Kennedy, Holden Hood, and Hudson Hood.  She was preceded in death by her husband, Clifford and two brothers, Bill “Woody” Woodman and Virgil “Junior” Woodman.
A Celebration of Vena’s life will be held at the First Presbyterian Church in San Benito, 10:00 AM, Thursday, August 18, 2011 with the Rev. Ed Robertson officiating.
The family request that those desiring to do so may make memorial donations to the Humane Society of Harlingen, 1106 Markowsky, Harlingen, Texas 78550.
The family would like to give a special thanks to Daminga Sanchez for her love and wonderful care of Vena, the special doctors and residents of Harlingen Family Practice and Odyssey Hospice Care.
Vena’s motto in life…”we come to love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly”.

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