Norma Jean (Beshirs Purvis) Trammel || Obituary

Norma Jean (Beshirs Purvis) Trammel was born on September 5, 1938, in Bryan County, Oklahoma, across the Red River. She passed away on Sunday, September 22, 2024, having recently turned 86.

Family will receive friends from 6:00 PM till 8:00 PM Wednesday at the Fry-Gibbs Funeral Home. Funeral services will be at 2:00 PM Thursday at the Leslie Chapel Pentecostal Holiness Church. Burial will be in the Georgia Cemetery. Rev. Ray Woods and Rev Clayton Wagner will be officiating.

Jean was the second child of 12 born to Nettie Freeman Beshirs and R.E. “Buster” Beshirs Sr.

She grew up on the road “following the harvest” from Oklahoma to California. On one of her final trips to California as a teenager, she fell in love, dated, and married A.D. Purvis who had just gotten out of the service. They welcomed their first child, Ilene while working the fields in Oklahoma. Her husband convinced her to move back to his hometown of Florence, South Carolina. Two years later, they welcomed their second child Robert. They eventually moved back to Dallas Texas. She was married to A.D. until his death in 1965.

One day, a man came knocking at her door who was a former childhood sweetheart. After learning that she was a single window, Orville Trammel was able to win her over and they married in 1968 building almost 44 years together until his death in Oct 2012.

She was once again lucky to become a mother to Sondra and Raymond Trammel, increasing the family to a total of six. Shortly thereafter, she “adopted” a son by choice, Ralph McFatridge and wife Janice.

Having started working in the cotton fields as young as five years old dragging the cotton sack, she had strong work ethics and was never afraid of work.  She worked as a seamstress in Dallas, and after moving back to Paris, worked on Nahas of Texas, followed by Hollywood Vassarette. Within months of working at any new job, she often became a supervisor due to her natural leadership. She later had her own sewing shop employing as many as six women at once producing 1,500 garments a day. Clothing they sewed could be found in Bealls, JC Penneys, Belks, and even Dillard’s department stores!  Later in life she became a care sitter, driving back and forth from Kaufman or White Rock Lake until each of her patients passed away.

She loved working outside in many of her flowerbeds. People would often stop while driving by just to look and comment on how beautiful her landscape was. In addition, she also planted and maintained the flower beds for her church.

She rededicated her life as a Christian in 1966 serving The Lord for 58 years. She was a Sunday School teacher, Women’s Missionary leader, and always competitive for her team to win the most in whatever fundraiser was going on. She was a faithful member of Leslie Chapel Pentecostal Holiness Church in Georgia Community where she could be heard shouting hallelujah or singing one of her many songs solo.

She is survived by her children, Ilene Farmer, Sondra Wisdom, Robert Purvis and wife Paula, Raymond Trammel; son by choice, Ralph McFatridge; grandchildren, Rebecca (Isau) Aguirre, DeWayne (Monica) Stephens II, Melissa Stephens (Chad) Yancey, Hollis (Amber) Wisdom, Crystal Wisdom, Amber Purvis (Rene) Picota, Amanda Ingram (Aaron) Myers, Amelia Purvis (Caleb) Christopher, Stormy Trammel, Cayla Trammel, Dalton Trammel; numerous great-grandchildren; brothers, JM, Michael (Deb), Jimmy, and Paul (Jane) Beshirs, one sister Carylon Barnett, sister-in-laws Katherine Beshirs, Bonnie Beshirs, Carolyn Beshirs, and Nancy Beshirs.

She is preceded in death by her parents, brothers: RA, Billy, Bobby, Joe Dee, and Ruel Beshirs Jr; brother-in-law Thomas Barnett, sister Nelda and brother-in-law Wayne Farmer, sisters-in-law Alice Beshirs, Lynn Reynolds, Dorothy Mote, Margaret Beshirs; sons-in-law David Farmer, Wayne Wisdom, nieces, and nephews.

Serving as pallbearers will be grandson Dalton Trammel, great-grandsons David Aguirre, Steven Harrelson Purvis, Jacob Myers, Ryan Yancey, and Kyle Yancey.
Honorary Pallbearers will be DeWayne Stephens II, Hollis Wisdom, Joseph Picota, Caleb Brewer, and Jeremy Margeson.

The family wants to give a special thanks to her niece, and personal care giver, for the past eight years, Norma Freeman.