Eunice Perez

Eunice Perez of Waukesha, formerly of Tampa, Florida, died Monday, October 18, 2010 at LindenGrove-Waukesha at the age of 97.  She was born on January 5, 1913 in Tampa, Florida, the daughter of Aldophus and Leonora (Hertell) Stubbs.  Eunice's first husband, Leon Hutchette, was killed in Italy during WWII.  They had two daughters, Shirley and Patricia.  She later married Elizardo “Tony” Perez and had a son, Joseph.  Tony also preceded her in death in 1972.  Eunice will be dearly missed by her children: Shirley (Lonnie) Wright of Jacksonville, FL, Patricia (Hutchette) Villareal of Austin, MN, and Joseph (Barbara) Perez of Waukesha; grandchildren: Suzanne, James, Kathy, Debra, Cheryl, Patty, Kim, Joseph, Jr., Victoria, and Joy.  She will also be missed by her many great and great-great grandchildren.  Eunice was the eldest of five children born to Aldophus and Leonora.  The Stubbs family has a rich American history dating back to the Civil War.  She was very proud of the fact that her grandfather was a Captain in the Confederate Army.  She and her family led a very peaceful rural lifestyle on a farm near Tampa, FL.  She and several women in her family were lifetime employees of the cigar industry in the Tampa Bay area.  She was an employee of the Hav-A-Tampa Cigar Corporation located in Ybor City, the heart of Tampa's Latin Quarter.  As a "Packer" she carefully selected cigars according to the color of the tobacco and placed the cigars on trays of 25, which were stacked in a rack that would eventually hold 500 cigars.  This was "piece work" which would often involve picking and packing 15,000 cigars a day.  She and her husband, Tony, were extremely fond of dancing to the music of the Big Bands.  They taught their children how to dance as well.  They were members of the Moose Lodge, as well as the Elks in Tampa.  One of her great joys was going swimming in the Gulf of Mexico.  As a family, they often went to the "beach" off the coast of Bradenton, FL, spending Sundays on Anna Maria Island, picnicing, swimming, and shelling.  This tradition would continue when her "Up North" grandchildren came to Florida for a visit.  She also enjoyed the family visits to Disney World.  Eunice loved her dogs and she loved the outdoors, two qualities that were instilled in her children, especially her son, Joseph.  She, Joe, and the dogs would often visit his farm in the Town of Rose, Waushara County.  This is where she enjoyed life the most in her old age.  The visits took her back to her childhood on her small farm in rural Tampa.  She especially enjoyed watching the variety of birds that visited the feeders or sitting outside under the stately White Pines and massive Red Oaks which graced the yard.  She would often mention how at peace she was when at the farm.  Eunice spent the last 13 years of her long life as a resident of LindenGrove-Waukesha.  She was absolutely the "Queen of Bingo".  She had collected mountains of stuffed animals won during the weekly bingo sessions put on by very loving and caring volunteer organizations at LindenGrove.  Her long life was attributable in no small part to the wonderful love and care that she received at LindenGrove-Waukesha.  She was quick with a laugh and became a favorite of the loving staff there.  She enjoyed when her "dogs" and her son came to visit, especially her favorite Chocolate Lab, Mocha.  One day Joe surprised Eunice and the staff by bringing an entire litter of Black Lab puppies for a visit, mother Allie and her ten 6-week old pups.  Eunice was very considerate and "shared" her dogs with everyone present.  Eunice was preceded in death by her parents, her siblings: Clarence, Marion, Frances, and Albert, her grandson Douglas and his father Melvin Mullis.  Visitation will be held on Friday, October 22, 2010 from 5:00 PM until 8:00 PM at Randle-Dable Funeral Home, 1110 S. Grand Ave., Waukesha.  A second visitation will be held on Saturday, October 23 at Hardell-Holly Funeral Home, 508 2nd St., Almond WI, from 11:00 AM until the 12:00 noon funeral service at the funeral home.  Burial will immediately follow at Village of Almond Cemetery.  In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Eunice’s name to LindenGrove-Waukesha, 425 University Dr., Waukesha, WI 53188.  Mother, you are very special and your children thank you for the loving care with which you provided each of us.  Thank you as well for teaching us love and compassion for others.  We love you and will miss you dearly.