Corliss Basco Flournoy

Corliss Rae Basco Flournoy, age 78, passed away Sunday, January 27, 2008, at Fort Worth Hospital after a long illness. Funeral services are under the direction of Blanchard St. Denis Funeral Home in Natchitoches, La. Services will be on Wednesday, January 30, 2008, at 10:00am in St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church in Gorum, La and burial the Gorum Cemetery Gorum, La. Ms. Flournoy was born on February 9, 1929 in Gorum,La. She graduated from St. Vincent’s Academy in Shreveport, La, and attended Northwestern University in Natchitoches, La. She married William Kelso Flournoy, Jr. and together they had three daughters. The family moved to Wichita Falls, Tx in 1961. Ms. Flournoy obtained a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree from Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls. She was employed for 25 years at Wichita Falls State Hospital, first as a Social Worker, then as the Director of Outreach Services, and retired as the Business Manager. She returned to her home in Gorum after her retirement. Ms. Flournoy was a lifetime Catholic, and had been a member of Sacred Heart Church in Wichita Falls and St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church in Gorum,La. She is preceded in death by her parents, Leo Carson and Mae Belle Basco; her sisters, Catherine Guarino and Charlotte Ann Lester; her brother, Carlton Basco; and her great granddaughter, Eveyn Elizabeth Pate. Survivors included her daughters and their husbands, Mai Isabele Flournoy and husband Jeff Shlager, Corliss Elizabeth Floyd and husband Mark, and Olivia Ruth Flournoy and husband James Cross; her sisters, Carley Wright, Carmen Troquille, and Clara McDaniel; her brother, Charles Basco; six grandchildren, Steven Floyd, Elizabeth Pate and husband Gavin, Jessica Shlager, Vanessa Shlager, Benjamin Cross, and William Cross; and two great grandchildren, Elijah and Ella Grace Pate; and many, many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends, all of whom were very special to her. Ms. Flournoy was a cancer survivor and had been actively involved in cancer support groups throughout the years. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Tx.