Iva Delle Freeman Hamilton, beloved mother, grandmother, sister, and aunt joined her Savior on Tuesday, November 28, 2017
A Celebration of Iva’s life will be held at 2:00 PM, Friday at Coggin Avenue Baptist Church. Interment will take place prior to the service at 11:30 AM in Eastlawn Memorial Park under the direction of Heartland Funeral Home. The family will receive friends at the funeral home on Thursday evening from 6:00 until 8:00.
Iva Delle Hamilton was born in Keltys, Texas on October 13, 1929. She graduated from Lufkin High School. She married William L. “Bill” Hamilton on January 24, 1947 and settled with him in El Paso, Texas where she began a long career with El Paso Natural Gas. She retired from that position in 1979 to accompany Bill to Saudi Arabia. When they returned stateside in 1982, they moved to Brownwood to be closer to their only child, Pam and her husband Steve Blake and grandson Chris Blake. She and Bill were married for 42 years, until his death.
In Brownwood, Iva was very involved with her church, Coggin Avenue Baptist. Her faith was very real to her and shone in her life. She taught Sunday School for 62 years, both in El Paso and Brownwood, and was in charge of Coggin Avenue’s 100th anniversary celebration.
Iva also served on the board of Howard Payne University for 18 years and was on the board of Brownwood’s Lyric Theater and involved in its restoration. She enjoyed traveling and collecting nativity scenes from around the world. Iva served as president of the Tanglewood Gardens for several years.
Iva has been a Yellow Rose recipient from Howard Payne University Woman’s Club in 2010 and was honored by the Girl Scouts of Central Texas in September of this year as one of 4 Women of Distinction. She was an active member of the Junior 20th Century Book Club.
Iva is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Pam and Steve Blake of Brownwood, one grandson, Chris Blake of Burbank, California, a brother and sister-in-law, Tom and Kathy Freeman of El Paso, nieces Susan Large and Kristi Burg, grand-nieces Lena and Susan Burg, and numerous close friends and family members.
Iva was preceded in death by her husband Bill and a grandson, Will Blake.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be made to Howard Payne University Scholarship Fund, Coggin Avenue Baptist Church or the Brownwood Lyric Theater.
Condolences, memories and tributes can be offered to the family online at heartlandfuneralhome.net