Wanda Lynn Burgess

Lou Wanda Lynn Coker-Burgess, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and woman of faith, passed away peacefully at home on January 23rd, 2025, in Garland, Texas. Born 83 years ago on January 12th, 1942, in Gainesville, Georgia, Wanda was the youngest daughter of Louis and Myrtle Coker. After high school and living in Memphis, Wanda met another native Georgian at the Fair Grounds in Memphis, Tennessee -- a Navy Aviation Seaman Recruit named Jimmie Burgess. Wanda and Jimmie courted, married, had their first daughter, and later moved to Key West. The Navy would continue to relocate them every few years to Brunswick, then Pensacola, Virginia Beach, and San Diego. 

In each new home, Wanda cared for their three girls, often while her husband was on deployment. Though Jimmie was fully present with his daughters as often as his military service allowed, Wanda’s tireless work and care made each new house into a home. She regularly hosted Jimmie’s colleagues from various countries and cherished the opportunity to learn about other cultures while introducing them to her own through southern hospitality. 

While in San Diego, Wanda got her associate degree in early childhood education and worked as a preschool teacher at Noah’s Ark Preschool in San Diego, while still raising her own girls. When Jimmie retired from the Navy, they relocated to the Dallas area where they eventually built their family home, spending their remaining 44 years in Garland. The first of those years would see Wanda as a preschool teacher at First Baptist Richardson, then as the Director of Concordia Lutheran Mother’s Day Out Program in Garland, and eventually as the beloved matriarch of 5 other households in the DFW area.

 Wanda’s retirement saw countless acts of charity and service at the Heights Church in Richardson, as well as many other local ministries. She taught Sunday School and Vacation Bible School, mentored local elementary school children, and sang in the choir for many years. She and Jimmie together served adults with special needs through Bartimaeus and Circle of Friends, they visited the homebound as Angels of Care, and they served local college students through the Baptist Student Ministries at UTD through which she and Jimmie hosted 4 international graduate students in their home. Each of the students are now de facto members of the family who consider Wanda their “Memaw.”

 Today, Wanda “Memaw” Burgess is survived by her sister, Pat Simpson, and her three daughters: Diane Morrow and her husband Steve of Fort Worth, TX, Andrea Hartgraves and her husband Troy of Sachse, TX, and Melissa Burgess of Denton, TX. She is also survived by grandchildren; Nathan Hartgraves, Amy Morrow, Michael Hartgraves, Philip Morrow, Payton Bryce, Daniel Hartgraves, Clarissa Bryce and Nicholas Bryce; and great grandchildren Rowan Hartgraves and Millie Kay Hartgraves, all of whom brought her immense joy and surrounded her with love and tender care in her final days.

 A celebration of Wanda’s life will be held on February 6th with a viewing at 9:30am and Celebration of Life service at 10:30am at The Heights Church in Richardson, Texas. All who knew and loved her are welcome to attend. In a private ceremony, Wanda will be buried with her husband Jimmie at the DFW National Cemetery later that afternoon. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to The American Heart Association or the Michael J. Fox Parkinson’s Foundation.