Merna Dell Ford's Obituary
FORD, Merna Dell Webber Whitley, died peacefully surrounded by her family on December 7, 2019, at CC Young Retirement Community in Dallas, Texas. Merna was born on March 8, 1938, in Memphis, Tennessee. She graduated from Treadwell High School in Memphis, then attended Lambuth College in Jackson, Tennessee. She later graduated from Louisiana State University. Merna worked for the LSU library for 20 years, and helped catalog the papers in the Russell Long collection. She was credited in a number of books for her research assistance for books about the Long family. She went to her first LSU football game in 1959, and was there on Halloween night when Billy Cannon made his famous run. She was a football season ticket holder, and an avid fan of all LSU sports for the rest of her life, and was especially proud to see her Tigers beat Alabama and claim the No. 1 ranking this year. She was a founding member of the Francis Asbury United Methodist Church and later an active member of First Christian Church, Church of the Disciples in Baton Rouge. She was a member of Friendship Force, the Historical Society, Widows in Ministry, and a number of other organizations in Baton Rouge and Zachary. She volunteered at the Zachary Food Pantry for many years. She is survived by her daughter Nancy W. Forney and her husband Ron of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, her daughter Beverly A. Whitley of Dallas, her granddaughter Shannon L. Peterson and her husband Matt and daughter Lila of Newark, Delaware, a sister Nancy W. Bradley and her husband Jimmy of Southaven, Mississippi, a brother Dr. Ben P. Webber and wife Jo Ann of Germantown, Tennessee, and two nephews, R. Lee Webber and Norris D. Webber, of Collierville, Tennessee. She is also survived by a stepdaughter Melissa Barrett of Toccoa, Georgia, and Melissa’s son Nick Mitchell of Atlanta, Georgia, her beloved dog Pluto, and many life-long friends and close neighbors in Baton Rouge and Zachary. She was preceded in death by her parents Lee Roy and Merlin Webber, her late husband Robert J. Ford, and a grandson Robert G. “Bo” Forney. The family wishes to express its gratitude to the caring and thoughtful staff of C.C. Young and their hospice staff for helping Merna in her last years. A service to honor Merna’s life will be held on Tuesday, December 10, a 3:00 p.m. at the Point at C.C. Young in Building 1 of 4829 W. Lawther, Dallas, Texas. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the C.C. Young Benevolent Fund, 4829 W. Lawther, Dallas, Texas.
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