Cerese Wyatt Teel, 78, passed away peacefully with her family by her side on Saturday, December 9.
Cerese was born in Greenwood, MS on November 7, 1945 to Victor and Lillian Wyatt. She spent her childhood and youth growing up in Lake Cormorant, MS, and she attended Tunica High School where she was homecoming queen her senior year. She attended Mississippi University for Women and received a bachelor of library science in 1963.
She married the love of her life Rex in 1967, and they had 56 wonderful years together. Their first few
years of marriage were spent in Memphis, TN, where she was a librarian with the Memphis Public Library system. They moved to Clarksdale in 1969 where she worked as a librarian at Heidelberg Elementary, Coahoma County High School, Lee Academy, and Lyon Elementary School. She was an active member of Oakhurst Baptist Church where she taught Sunday school, children’s choirs, and served on various committees. She served in the community as a Girl Scout Leader and the Clarksdale King’s Daughters Organization.
Anticipating their retirement, Rex and Cerese moved to Starkville, MS in December 1994. She worked for a couple of years as a school librarian but in 2000 took on the director role of the Oktibbeha County chapter of the American Red Cross. She accomplished many things during her time there, inspiring and serving many families during the tragedy of hurricane Katrina. She was an active member of First Baptist Church Starkville and loved her church and its people!
Cerese is preceded in death by her parents Victor and Lillian Wyatt. She is survived by her husband Rex S. Teel of 56 years; her daughters Suzanne Teel Sullivan (James) of Madison, MS and Amy Teel Hayes (Mark) and grandson Matthew Allen Hayes of Olive Branch; and her brother Victor Wyatt, Jr. (Nell) of Ridgeland, MS.
Visitation will be from 9:30 – 11 a.m. on Wednesday, December 13th with funeral to follow at 11:00 a.m. Both visitation and funeral will be at First Baptist Church in Starkville. A brief graveside interment will follow the service at Memorial Gardens Park Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be given to the Outreach Center of First Baptist Church Starkville.
The family would like to thank Methodist Alliance Hospice in Olive Branch, MS for the compassionate
care and services they provided in the last days of Cerese’s life.
