Few people know that Nora Baze died in April. Still fewer know what defined her life.
No family was among a small group of people who attended her funeral April 12 at the City of Lubbock Cemetery. The only personal information in her eulogy was her name and age.
Her passing was noted by her caretakers from Carousel Care Center, representatives from the county's General Assistance Agency and a member of Hospice of Lubbock, who attended her funeral.
The absence of friends and family at the funeral reflected what some knew about her brief stay in Lubbock.
''About the only family she had was our staff,'' said Kay Wilson, activity director at Carousel. No visitors ever came to see Baze, she said.
Wilson said Baze was severely mentally retarded.
She had few requests while staying at the Carousel Care Center. She desired a Dr Pepper three times a day and liked dolls, said Eric Jewell, administrator at Carousel.
Baze, 56, had the mental capacity roughly of a 2-year-old, Jewell said.
Although dying at age 56 might seem young to most people, ''that is a remarkable longevity for an MHMR patient,'' Jewell said.
When Baze died, her case was referred to the Lubbock County General Assistance department to see if the county would pay for her burial. The county generally pays burial costs for between 45 and 70 indigent people annually, said Jose Vasquez, director of the department.
In cases where little is known about the deceased and no family exists, County Judge Tom Head must determine if the county will pay for a funeral.
Baze qualified.
The county paid $925 for her funeral. It spent $37,097 last fiscal year for indigent burials and has spent $14,723 since October for the service.
Vasquez said, ''It is never something that you take for granted that you can do a job without emotionally involving yourself.''
It is also difficult to deliver eulogies for people about whom little is known, said Wayne R. Williams, pastor emeritus of Parkway Drive Baptist Church, who officiated Baze's funeral.
''It's hard to know what to say. Usually, I know the person, and I'm able to relate some things in the service that depicts their life,'' he said.
''That's really sad when there's no family there to mourn their passing. It makes me feel depressed and sad because it's a lonely time.''
Her caretakers made a special request for her burial to place in her plainly shaped casket a purple teddy bear Baze received shortly before she died.
''... So she won't be alone,'' Marsha Taylor, Carousel dietary director, said.
Whether it's placing a teddy bear in someone's casket or similar requests, indigent burials are personalized when possible.
Brock's South Plains Funeral Directors, with which the county contracts for indigent burial services, gives families the option of holding services in a chapel or graveside and provides pastors of various religious denomination to officiate burials, said M.C. Brock Sr., manager of Brock's.
Although indigent burials lack frills, Brock said, they remain respectful.
''You judge society on the way they bury their dead,'' Brock said. ''That's what is unique about this particular county. This county shows more respect and graciousness to the family and the deceased.
''I think it's a good thing that people who are less fortunate than others are buried in a dignified manner.''
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http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/050101/loc_050101037.shtml
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Born in Haskell Co, TX
Daughter of Roy Preston Baze (6/30/1914-6/1/1976) and Lena Laferne Bishop Baze (8/23/1913-7/20/1999).
Sister of Billy Roy, James Edgar Baze, Allen Steve Baze and Bradford Lee Baze.
Granddaughter of Otis James & Nora Baze.
No family was among a small group of people who attended her funeral April 12 at the City of Lubbock Cemetery. The only personal information in her eulogy was her name and age.
Her passing was noted by her caretakers from Carousel Care Center, representatives from the county's General Assistance Agency and a member of Hospice of Lubbock, who attended her funeral.
The absence of friends and family at the funeral reflected what some knew about her brief stay in Lubbock.
''About the only family she had was our staff,'' said Kay Wilson, activity director at Carousel. No visitors ever came to see Baze, she said.
Wilson said Baze was severely mentally retarded.
She had few requests while staying at the Carousel Care Center. She desired a Dr Pepper three times a day and liked dolls, said Eric Jewell, administrator at Carousel.
Baze, 56, had the mental capacity roughly of a 2-year-old, Jewell said.
Although dying at age 56 might seem young to most people, ''that is a remarkable longevity for an MHMR patient,'' Jewell said.
When Baze died, her case was referred to the Lubbock County General Assistance department to see if the county would pay for her burial. The county generally pays burial costs for between 45 and 70 indigent people annually, said Jose Vasquez, director of the department.
In cases where little is known about the deceased and no family exists, County Judge Tom Head must determine if the county will pay for a funeral.
Baze qualified.
The county paid $925 for her funeral. It spent $37,097 last fiscal year for indigent burials and has spent $14,723 since October for the service.
Vasquez said, ''It is never something that you take for granted that you can do a job without emotionally involving yourself.''
It is also difficult to deliver eulogies for people about whom little is known, said Wayne R. Williams, pastor emeritus of Parkway Drive Baptist Church, who officiated Baze's funeral.
''It's hard to know what to say. Usually, I know the person, and I'm able to relate some things in the service that depicts their life,'' he said.
''That's really sad when there's no family there to mourn their passing. It makes me feel depressed and sad because it's a lonely time.''
Her caretakers made a special request for her burial to place in her plainly shaped casket a purple teddy bear Baze received shortly before she died.
''... So she won't be alone,'' Marsha Taylor, Carousel dietary director, said.
Whether it's placing a teddy bear in someone's casket or similar requests, indigent burials are personalized when possible.
Brock's South Plains Funeral Directors, with which the county contracts for indigent burial services, gives families the option of holding services in a chapel or graveside and provides pastors of various religious denomination to officiate burials, said M.C. Brock Sr., manager of Brock's.
Although indigent burials lack frills, Brock said, they remain respectful.
''You judge society on the way they bury their dead,'' Brock said. ''That's what is unique about this particular county. This county shows more respect and graciousness to the family and the deceased.
''I think it's a good thing that people who are less fortunate than others are buried in a dignified manner.''
----------------------------------------------------
http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/050101/loc_050101037.shtml
-----------------------------------------------------
Born in Haskell Co, TX
Daughter of Roy Preston Baze (6/30/1914-6/1/1976) and Lena Laferne Bishop Baze (8/23/1913-7/20/1999).
Sister of Billy Roy, James Edgar Baze, Allen Steve Baze and Bradford Lee Baze.
Granddaughter of Otis James & Nora Baze.
Few people know that Nora Baze died in April. Still fewer know what defined her life.
No family was among a small group of people who attended her funeral April 12 at the City of Lubbock Cemetery. The only personal information in her eulogy was her name and age.
Her passing was noted by her caretakers from Carousel Care Center, representatives from the county's General Assistance Agency and a member of Hospice of Lubbock, who attended her funeral.
The absence of friends and family at the funeral reflected what some knew about her brief stay in Lubbock.
''About the only family she had was our staff,'' said Kay Wilson, activity director at Carousel. No visitors ever came to see Baze, she said.
Wilson said Baze was severely mentally retarded.
She had few requests while staying at the Carousel Care Center. She desired a Dr Pepper three times a day and liked dolls, said Eric Jewell, administrator at Carousel.
Baze, 56, had the mental capacity roughly of a 2-year-old, Jewell said.
Although dying at age 56 might seem young to most people, ''that is a remarkable longevity for an MHMR patient,'' Jewell said.
When Baze died, her case was referred to the Lubbock County General Assistance department to see if the county would pay for her burial. The county generally pays burial costs for between 45 and 70 indigent people annually, said Jose Vasquez, director of the department.
In cases where little is known about the deceased and no family exists, County Judge Tom Head must determine if the county will pay for a funeral.
Baze qualified.
The county paid $925 for her funeral. It spent $37,097 last fiscal year for indigent burials and has spent $14,723 since October for the service.
Vasquez said, ''It is never something that you take for granted that you can do a job without emotionally involving yourself.''
It is also difficult to deliver eulogies for people about whom little is known, said Wayne R. Williams, pastor emeritus of Parkway Drive Baptist Church, who officiated Baze's funeral.
''It's hard to know what to say. Usually, I know the person, and I'm able to relate some things in the service that depicts their life,'' he said.
''That's really sad when there's no family there to mourn their passing. It makes me feel depressed and sad because it's a lonely time.''
Her caretakers made a special request for her burial to place in her plainly shaped casket a purple teddy bear Baze received shortly before she died.
''... So she won't be alone,'' Marsha Taylor, Carousel dietary director, said.
Whether it's placing a teddy bear in someone's casket or similar requests, indigent burials are personalized when possible.
Brock's South Plains Funeral Directors, with which the county contracts for indigent burial services, gives families the option of holding services in a chapel or graveside and provides pastors of various religious denomination to officiate burials, said M.C. Brock Sr., manager of Brock's.
Although indigent burials lack frills, Brock said, they remain respectful.
''You judge society on the way they bury their dead,'' Brock said. ''That's what is unique about this particular county. This county shows more respect and graciousness to the family and the deceased.
''I think it's a good thing that people who are less fortunate than others are buried in a dignified manner.''
----------------------------------------------------
http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/050101/loc_050101037.shtml
-----------------------------------------------------
Born in Haskell Co, TX
Daughter of Roy Preston Baze (6/30/1914-6/1/1976) and Lena Laferne Bishop Baze (8/23/1913-7/20/1999).
Sister of Billy Roy, James Edgar Baze, Allen Steve Baze and Bradford Lee Baze.
Granddaughter of Otis James & Nora Baze.
No family was among a small group of people who attended her funeral April 12 at the City of Lubbock Cemetery. The only personal information in her eulogy was her name and age.
Her passing was noted by her caretakers from Carousel Care Center, representatives from the county's General Assistance Agency and a member of Hospice of Lubbock, who attended her funeral.
The absence of friends and family at the funeral reflected what some knew about her brief stay in Lubbock.
''About the only family she had was our staff,'' said Kay Wilson, activity director at Carousel. No visitors ever came to see Baze, she said.
Wilson said Baze was severely mentally retarded.
She had few requests while staying at the Carousel Care Center. She desired a Dr Pepper three times a day and liked dolls, said Eric Jewell, administrator at Carousel.
Baze, 56, had the mental capacity roughly of a 2-year-old, Jewell said.
Although dying at age 56 might seem young to most people, ''that is a remarkable longevity for an MHMR patient,'' Jewell said.
When Baze died, her case was referred to the Lubbock County General Assistance department to see if the county would pay for her burial. The county generally pays burial costs for between 45 and 70 indigent people annually, said Jose Vasquez, director of the department.
In cases where little is known about the deceased and no family exists, County Judge Tom Head must determine if the county will pay for a funeral.
Baze qualified.
The county paid $925 for her funeral. It spent $37,097 last fiscal year for indigent burials and has spent $14,723 since October for the service.
Vasquez said, ''It is never something that you take for granted that you can do a job without emotionally involving yourself.''
It is also difficult to deliver eulogies for people about whom little is known, said Wayne R. Williams, pastor emeritus of Parkway Drive Baptist Church, who officiated Baze's funeral.
''It's hard to know what to say. Usually, I know the person, and I'm able to relate some things in the service that depicts their life,'' he said.
''That's really sad when there's no family there to mourn their passing. It makes me feel depressed and sad because it's a lonely time.''
Her caretakers made a special request for her burial to place in her plainly shaped casket a purple teddy bear Baze received shortly before she died.
''... So she won't be alone,'' Marsha Taylor, Carousel dietary director, said.
Whether it's placing a teddy bear in someone's casket or similar requests, indigent burials are personalized when possible.
Brock's South Plains Funeral Directors, with which the county contracts for indigent burial services, gives families the option of holding services in a chapel or graveside and provides pastors of various religious denomination to officiate burials, said M.C. Brock Sr., manager of Brock's.
Although indigent burials lack frills, Brock said, they remain respectful.
''You judge society on the way they bury their dead,'' Brock said. ''That's what is unique about this particular county. This county shows more respect and graciousness to the family and the deceased.
''I think it's a good thing that people who are less fortunate than others are buried in a dignified manner.''
----------------------------------------------------
http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/050101/loc_050101037.shtml
-----------------------------------------------------
Born in Haskell Co, TX
Daughter of Roy Preston Baze (6/30/1914-6/1/1976) and Lena Laferne Bishop Baze (8/23/1913-7/20/1999).
Sister of Billy Roy, James Edgar Baze, Allen Steve Baze and Bradford Lee Baze.
Granddaughter of Otis James & Nora Baze.
Gravesite Details
buried 4-12-2001
