Stella Mae “Katie” Mulhollan of Bridge City left this earth on Saturday, November 2, 2024, after a courageous battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
Services for Katie will be under the direction of Claybar Funeral Home in Bridge City. There will be a visitation for family and friends on Thursday, November 7 at 10am, with funeral services immediately following at 11. Pastor Josh Fults of First Baptist Church Orange will be officiating. Katie will be laid to rest at Autumn Oaks Memorial Park in Orange.
Katie was born August 15, 1935, in Hamlin, Texas, to Eunice and William Hamric. At an early age, she decided she didn’t care for her given name and would thereafter be known as “Katie.” Her passion in high school was twirling; she was a proud member of the renown Bengal Guards Drum and Bugle Corps. On April 11, 1953, she married Stewart Charles Mulhollan in Orange, Texas. They eventually made their home in the Bridge City area, where they raised their five children. After Stewart’s death in 1990, she began her second act as a full time Maw Maw and avid bridge player. She loved weekly gatherings with her dear friends, affectionately known as “the Bridge Ladies,” for more than 40 years. Katie loved science fiction - specifically Star Trek, hosting family dinners, and was an inspired snacker - always ready for “a teaspoon of ice cream” or “two or three french fries.” She never met a stranger - she loved to talk to people and share stories about her life and family. Until her disease intervened, she was a member of St. Paul Methodist Church in Bridge City, delighting in fellowship.
Katie wasn’t just a typical mother and grandmother; she was arts and crafts director, chef, baker, confectioner, chauffeur, and teacher. She was a model homemaker and the world’s best giver of hugs. She lived to serve her family and friends, forged her own happiness through that of others.
Katie was predeceased by her parents, her husband Stewart, and her siblings Richard Hamric, Juancy Cannifax, Billy Hamric, and Addie (Wiggy) McDonald. She is survived by her son Chuck Mulhollan and wife Kellie, her daughters Debbie Lyles and husband Glen (with whom she lived for many years), Cindy Mims and husband Ralf, Jan Akers and husband Scott, and Leslie Potts and husband David. Also surviving are her eight grandchildren Chad Porterfield, Charla LaRocca, Lee Mims and wife Katie, Tara Allen and husband Thomas, Laci Gibbens and husband Logan, Michael Schrieber, Brandon Lyles and wife Makayla, and Nicole Davidson and husband Jimmy, as well as 16 great grandchildren. She was also “Maw Maw” to many more, hosting sleepovers for friends of her grandchildren, including many in the neighborhood. Katie was loved and treasured by many and will be missed greatly.
Serving as pallbearers will be Glen Lyles, Scott Akers, David Potts, Lee Mims, Michael Schrieber and Brandon Lyles. Honorary pallbearers are Chuck Mulhollan and Ralf Mims.