Eva Mullin

Eva Ruth Austin, the third child born in Daingerfield to Reverend Alfred and Clemmie Austin. Her brother, Spurgeon, and sisters Fannie Mae and Freddie Mae, preceded her in death. In 1938, Eva met and married the love of her life, Timothy Mullin on Thanksgiving Day, November 23. To this union, two children were born: Timotha and Jeanette. Soon after the death of her sister Freddie, Tim and Eva brought home her son (Howard Hill, a big brother to the girls) and reared him to maturity. He passed away in San Bernadino, CA in 2006. Eva united with the New Hope Baptist Church at an early age. She became the pianist for the church at the age of 13 and continued in this position and organist until her health began to fail. She also served in many other capacities at New Hope, including Sunday School and BTU teacher for the Junior Class, Deaconess president for over 40 years, secretary of the Missionary Society, and musician for the district choirs, and she was secretary for over 60 years for the Morris Delight Chapter #304 of the Eastern Star. She also initiated the purchase of the first organ for the church. Eva attended elementary school in Morris County at Daingerfield Junior High. (At that time, there was no high school in Daingerfield.) She finished high school at Carver High in Naples, TX. She attended Jarvis Christian College for one year, then received her BS Degree at Bishop College in Marshall, TX. She later attended Texas Southern University and Commerce University for the Master's Degree Program. She began teaching school in Daingerfield, many years as Principal at a school in the New Jerusalem community. Later she taught at Daingerfield, Mt. Moriah, Douglasville, Hughes Springs (Traylor High School), and back to Daingerfield where, after 40 years of teaching, retired from South Elementary Middle School. She often talked about the early years at Douglasville, where she had a one-room classroom with all grades (first thru twelfth) and had to prepare breakfast and lunch for the students. After subbing at the school for a year, she left the classroom again to keep and care for the other love of her life, her grandson Timothy. As a footnote: When schools were first desegregated in Daingerfield (1965), Eva was selected and hired as the first black teacher at West Elementary. Eva leaves to mourn: Two daughters, Timotha Ruth (husband William Curtis Jones) and Jeanette Mullin; grandson Timothy Royce; one adopted son, LaRoyce Hanon; one niece and two nephews in San Bernadino, CA; three very special cousins; Matthew Austin, Jr., Robert Austin, and Orvis Austin; a very special friend, Vivian Joyce Hanon; and many cousins and close friends. A very special thanks to Cypress Home Health Care and her favorite aide Jamie. Funeral services will be 1:00 p.m., Saturday, January 26, 2013 at New Hope Baptist Church, Daingerfield, Texas, with Reverend D. A. Hill, officiating. Burial will follow at Daingerfield Cemetery, under the direction of Reeder-Davis Funeral Home, of Hughes Springs. Mrs. Mullin will lie in state from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., Friday, January 25, 2013 at the funeral home.