Jewel McCullough

1909 - 2019

Jewel McCullough
1909-2019
Jewel Butler McCullough (née Jewel DuVal Butler), age 110, passed away on Thursday, the 3rd of October 2019.
Jewel was born in in the Piney Woods of Jasper County, Texas, on the 23rd of January 1909 at her grandfather's, Alexander Gilmer's mill town of Remlig (his spelled backwards). She lived in Beaumont, and at age six was taken by her mother to New York City. In later years, Jewel fondly remembered taking a taxi to school, going to tea with her mother at Schraffts, and attending the Ziegfeld Follies to see W.C. Fields and Will Rogers.
After graduating from the Spence School in Manhattan, Jewel left NYC in the 1929 Depression and settled in Houston, where she married John Temple, "Pottie," McCullough in 1938. While he worked at Baker and Botts, Jewel was active in her daughters' lives at St. John's School, as well as the Junior League of Houston and Houston Country Club. Although she never was a degree-seeking college student, she dedicated her life to learning and art. She studied poetry at the University of Houston, then photography and painting, primarily watercolor, at the Glassell School of Art. She became a master of book-binding, paper marbling, and papermaking.
In 1975, Jewel found a summer home in Boulder, Colorado. She continued to spend summers there until her late 90s, enjoying time with her daughters and grandchildren. Jewel often attributed her long life to chocolate, white wine, and good health care.
Jewel is survived by her daughters, Judith M. Reilly, Nelda M. Hirsh and her husband David Hirsh; her four grandchildren, Daniel and Aaron Hirsh, Alexander and Susannah Reilly; and eight great-grandchildren, as well as her loving, dedicated friend Alejandro Huitz. Jewel was preceded in death by her husband and her sister Nelda Woodall.
The memorial service is to be conducted on Monday, the 7th of October at two o'clock in the afternoon, at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church, located at 12955 Memorial Drive in Houston.
In lieu of floral arrangements, memorial contributions in honor of Jewel, may be directed to Doctors Without Borders, P.O. Box 5030, Hagerstown, Maryland 21741; or The Light House of Houston, 3602 West Dallas, Houston, Texas 77019.