Ike victim's funeral on Saturday

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Ike victim's funeral on Saturday

By BLAIR DEDRICK ORTMANN

January, 1, 2009

As a radiation oncologist at University of Texas Medical Branch, Jennifer McLemore bought coffee cups to cheer her often terminally ill patients and make their treatment a little happier.

When their birthdays came around, she sent them cards.

"She loved her job over there," said McLemore's son Mark Gassiot of Silsbee. "I've had people look me up through e-mail forwards and stuff - quite a few patients wrote to me."

Some of those patients may be among the mourners gathered Saturday at noon at Broussard's chapel, 1605 N. Major Drive, in Beaumont to remember McLemore, who died as a result of Hurricane Ike.

The 58-year-old was last heard from on Sept. 13 as the hurricane hit Gilchrist.

"I talked to her up until about 4 o'clock, and the houses on the other side of her had already broke off their pilings and were coming at her house," Gassiot said. "She was telling me which houses were gone. She lost cell service after that."

McLemore was still in Gilchrist because of HooDoo, an old Pit Bull she had owned for years, Gassiot said.

"There was no way she could leave that dog," he said.

Through conversations with McLemore Thursday, Gassiot thought she was coming to Silsbee early Friday morning. Too late, he learned she didn't have anyone to help her load the heavy dog into the car.

In the meantime, Gassiot had been calling every emergency rescue group he could think of, but there were too many people to rescue in the short amount of time they had.

By 3:30 a.m., the Coast Guard stopped flying and there was no way to get McLemore out.

Her body was found Nov. 2 in Chambers Co. and identified through dental records Nov. 25, according to Enterprise archives.

Fourty-five people are still listed as missing since Hurricane Ike on the Laura Recovery Center's Web site.

One other body has been found in Chambers County. The body of Gail L. Ettenger, 58, of Gilchrist, was found Sept. 23, according to archives.

Four bodies have been found on Goat Island, two of which have been identified, including Herman "PeeWee" Thomas Moseley, 48, of Gilchrist and Shane Williams, 33, of Port Bolivar.

Since McLemore was identified, Gassiot has had trouble connecting with his mom's friends and co-workers who have scattered since Gilchrist was destroyed by Ike and UTMB has shut down many departments, including McLemore's.

He set up an e-mail address for friends to contact him about her services, and about 60 people responded since the Houston Chronicle printed an article at the beginning of December voicing his concern that no one would know about the funeral.

"So many people, so many patients were very grateful to her," he said. "She always had a smile for everybody."

McLemore had lived in Gilchrist for about 23 years and was a part of the community, including teaching Sunday School at the Lighthouse Gospel Church.

She also spent a lot of time with her family, which included five children, Gassiot, Randy Jones, Thomas Johnson, Sherry Gassiot and Laurie Corder; and 15 grandchildren.

Gassiot said one thing he greatly regrets is that he doesn't have more pictures of his mom - all her albums, even the framed pictures in her first-floor office, are all gone.

"I've got 63 exactly," he said. "That's terrible, isn't it?"

"I wish to God I had more pictures of her."