Grace Abrassart

Grace Abrassart -- St. AnneGrace Adele Abrassart, beloved wife and mother, passed into the presence of her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Monday (Aug. 11, 2008). She was born May 13, 1926, to William and Florence Ethel (Pement) Cochran. She attended Manteno High School, where she was a cheerleader and graduated from Harper High School in Chicago in 1944. She married her high school sweetheart, Rudy Abrassart, on Dec. 28, 1944.Grace worked at Wiebolt's and Standard Oil in Chicago, with Rudy at the St. Anne Coffee Shop, as a homemaker, at Permonite (1969-71), Manteno Mental Health Hospital (1971-85) as a technician, on the switchboard, and in the pharmacy. She retired from Shapiro Developmental Center in 1988.Grace possessed all the best personality and character traits: She was spunky, friendly, fun-loving, optimistic, warmhearted, kind, generous, gracious, compassionate, understanding, loving, loyal, faithful and self-sacrificing. She was a devoted member of the First Baptist Church of St. Anne for the past 57 years, where she served as a Sunday school teacher, and sang solos and duets with Rudy in the choir, and a quartet with their son and daughter.She is survived by Rudy, her husband of 63 years; her sister-in-law, Deloris Abrassart; three sons and daughters-in-law, Wes and Karen of Kankakee, Steve and Kim, Fred and Sharon, all of St. Anne; and two daughters and sons-in-law, Beth and Vaughn Whitesell of Greensboro, N.C., and Reba and David Worth of St. Anne. Grace has 12 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her brother and sister-in-law, Fred and Margaret Cochran; her sister and brother-in-law, Virginia and Ted Nelson; two nephews,; her infant daughter, Rachel Marie; and her infant granddaughter, Sarah Kay.In her younger years Grace loved to rollerskate and swim; she was a midlife motorcyclist, and enjoyed embroidering, crocheting, quilting, reading, working crossword puzzles, and frequenting church and civic sales. She attended reunions and her Red Hat Society meetings regularly. She will be remembered for her beautiful singing voice and her smile, the outward expressions of her inner beauty. She will be sadly missed by her family and friends.Visitation will be from 9 a.m. Thursday until the 11 a.m. services at the First Baptist Church, 205 W. Sheffield Street, St. Anne. The Rev. Ron Murphy will officiate. Memorials may be made to The Grace Abrassart Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 273, St. Anne, IL 60964. Clancy-Gernon-Houk Funeral Home, St. Anne, is in charge of arrangements.

Grace Abrassart

May 13, 1926 - August 11, 2008