Mildred Jo (Riley) Myrick, 87, passed away on December 14, 2021 at her home in Carrollton, Texas.
Born in Trenton, Texas in 1934, she was the daughter of Edgar Riley and Susan Ella Moody. Jodie met Aubry Myrick at a Trenton baseball field in July 1952. He hit a home run and secured a place in her heart. They were married for 68 years. They spent four years as an Air Force family, including time living in Weisbaden, Germany. Jodie and Aubry moved to Irving in 1960, where she attended college to get her teaching degree. She received her BA in Education in 1965, all while raising three children under the age of ten. Her evenings were spent studying at the kitchen table after the kids were in bed. This was quite an accomplishment since she was the first person in her family to get a college degree. Jodie taught data processing in Dallas ISD at Crozier Tech and Skyline High School.
After their kids were grown, Jodie and Aubry lived in Florida and California for about 10 years. Jodie loved her years living in other states, where she learned to play a “mean game” of tennis and also enjoyed square dancing. After Aubry retired, they joined the RV club Rambling Sams. Jodie held numerous offices at the local and district level in both the Rambling Sams group and the Texas Road Runner Square Dance club. Jodie and Aubry travelled to all 50 states and “practically drove the wheels” off their motor home. Jodie wrote for the Trenton Tribune newspaper. Her byline was “Jokes by Jodie.” She loved sharing humerous stories and was quite good at telling the jokes at the dinner table. Jodie was a devoted grandmother and dearly loved spoiling her grandkids. The grandkids called her GrannyJo, which was later shortened to JoJo – and most all of the family called her that, too. Jodie was a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother who will be missed by all.
Jodie is survived by her husband Aubry Myrick of Carrollton, Texas; daughter Sherry Jo Van Essen and husband John of Sagle, Idaho, daughter Brenda Sue Ewing and husband Price of Grapevine, and son Michael Aubry Myrick and wife Cheryl of Eatonville, Washington; and her 8 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren.
A visitation will be held at Hurst’s Fielder-Baker Funeral Home at 2:00PM on Wednesday, December 22, 2021. The Graveside service will be the same day at 3:00PM at Blue Ridge Cemetery in Blue Ridge, Texas.