Dewitt Fordham

Dewitt Talmage Fordham, 89, of Brenham, died August 8, 2011 at his residence. A graveside service will be held Wednesday, August 10 at 11:00 a.m. at Evergreen Park in Wharton. A memorial service will be held Saturday, August 13 at 11:00 a.m. at Eben-Ezer Lutheran Church of Berlin with Ken Weiss officiating. Mr. Fordham was born November 29, 1921, in Cotton Valley, Louisiana, to Dewitt Lymon and Dora Gertrude Blackwelder Fordham. He was baptized in St. Paul Lutheran Church of Wharton, and confirmed in 1969 in Trinity Lutheran Church in El Campo. He attended Tyler Commercial College and Texas A&M. Mr. Fordham served in the U.S. Navy and in the Marines as a corpsman. On February 15, 1945, he was married to Beulah Mae Collins in Dublin, Georgia. In his early years, he ran a dairy. He then worked for Jim C. Locke Co. as a bookkeeper and later bought the business. Mr. Fordham also worked as city secretary, city inspector, and city manager of Wharton. He was a member of the Lutheran Church ELCA and held an Honorary Degree in Future Farmers of America. He was a 64-year member of Masonic Lodge AF&AM and also served as the past Master of Grand Lodge of Texas. For 64 years he was a member of the Order of the Eastern Star and also held memberships in Wharton Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion Wharton and Brenham, the Lions Club and the Chamber of Commerce. Survivors include his wife, Beulah Mae Fordham of Brenham; daughter, Mary S. Fordham Rasmussen Longhofer and husband Eddie Longhofer Jr.; sisters, Mildred Bernice Fordham Fredrick and Dorothy Ethylene Fordham Carpenter; sister-in-law, Nelda Waters Fordham; grandchildren, Damian and Tiffany Rasmussen; and great-grandchild, Taylen Lea Rasmussen. He was preceded in death by his parents, sister Cora Fordham, brother Fred Willis Fordham, and son-in-law Leonard Rasmussen. Memorials may be given to Eben-Ezer Lutheran Church of Berlin. Funeral arrangements are entrusted to Memorial Oaks Chapel, 1306 W. Main St., Brenham, TX. To post a tribute to the family, visit www.memorialoaks.chapel.com.