Maxine Wooley Lum

Funeral services for Ms. Maxine Wooley Lum, 84, of Chestnut, Louisiana, will be held at 2:00 P.M. Tuesday, January 23, 2024, at Ashland Baptist Church with Dr. David Moore officiating and Reverend Danny Slack assisting. Interment will follow in Weaver Cemetery in Chestnut, Louisiana. Visitation will be held from 5-8 P.M. January 22 at Ashland Baptist Church, Ashland, Louisiana. Services will be under the direction of Rockett-Nettles Funeral Home, Coushatta, Louisiana.
Maxine was born May 10, 1939, in Chestnut, Louisiana and passed from this life on January 16, 2024 in Coushatta, Louisiana.
She was the second of four children born to Wilton Henry and Ola Lee Ham Wooley. Maxine attended and graduated from Ashland High School, where she played basketball and was a member of Future Homemakers of America. In her senior year, her basketball team won their district and regional games and made it to the State playoffs.
In 1955, in front of her parents' store, she met the love of her life, Robert W. "Bobby" Lum. After a two-year courtship, they were married on December 16, 1957, at her parents' home.
They welcomed their only child, Mandy, in January of 1967 and she was the light of her parents' lives. Maxine was a devoted mother, and she provided a Christian home for Mandy to grow up in.
They made their home in Chestnut, where she helped establish Wooleyville, which consisted of her husband and herself, her daughter, her parents, siblings and her nieces and nephews. She was not only an aunt but a second mother to her nieces and nephews.
Maxine cooked many meals, whether it was Sunday lunch, holiday meals for family or to feed many friends and family that came to visit at her house or the "store". The summer hay-haulers also ate well when she, Aunt Lou and Mama Ola prepared the meal. Her special fudge, chocolate, coconut and sweet potato pies will be missed at Christmas and Thanksgiving. As well as all the birthday cakes she made for all her family through the years.
Maxine worked every summer helping to raise a family garden with her parents and siblings. Many thousands of bags of cream-style field corn and purple-hull peas were frozen, along with hundreds of jars of sweet pickles, pepper relish and various jellies and preserves. She was also an excellent seamstress, and she sewed many clothes and dresses for Mandy and her nieces including a wedding dress, many Easter dresses and later prom dresses.
She was a dedicated wife, mother, and Christian who loved God and her church family. She will be well remembered as the Beginners Vacation Bible School teacher. She loved teaching the little children about Jesus.
Maxine, Bobby, Mandy and Troy were loyal supporters of the Northwestern State University Men and Women's basketball programs and attended many games at home and on the road. They also enjoyed going to gospel concerts, making many trips to see her favorites, the Southern Plainsmen. She loved her Dallas Cowboys, and her whole family cheered them on for over 50 years.
While drinking coffee in early morning or any other time when she sat down, you could find her working her word search puzzles. One of Maxine's favorite places to visit was Branson, Missouri and Mandy and Troy made sure she got to visit as often as she could.
Maxine will be sorely missed, but remembered well, by all who knew her.
She is preceded in death by her husband of 63 years, Robert W. "Bobby" Lum; parents, Wilton and Ola Wooley; brother, John H. Wooley and wife Lillian; sister, Louise Rushing and husband LeRoy; brother-in-law, Dr. James Guin; nephew, John Alan Wooley and great-nephew, Seth Rushing.
Maxine is survived by her daughter, Mandy Lum Wamsley and husband, Troy of Chestnut; sister, Dorothy W. Guin of Chestnut; sisters-in-law, Jackie Lum and Margaret Lum; her Wooleyville family: Diane, Randy and Evan Warren, Randall and Jere Rushing, Lecie Rushing, Timothy Havard and Saylor Grace Havard, Jennifer and Bill Griffin, Josie, Nathan, Canon Henry and Elizabeth James Schloer, Danielle, Chad and Allie Curole and Cade Watts, Jonah and Jessie Wooley; also, a host of nieces and nephews.
Honored to serve as pallbearers are Randall Rushing, Bill Griffin, Chad Curole, Evan Warren, Jessie Wooley, Jonah Wooley, Nathan Schloer and Cade Watts. Honorary pallbearers are Randy Warren, Lecie Rushing, Josie Schloer, Allie Curole, Saylor Havard, Canon Schloer, Marcelle Slaughter and Alan Broussard.
The family would also like to thank Dr. Iqbal Singh and Dr. Himanshu Desai, and Dr. Josh Cason and staff of Christus Coushatta Health Care Center for the care shown to Maxine.