Rita Standefer

Rita Lucille Southerland Harrison Standefer of Waco, Texas, went to be with her Lord and Savior on December 2, 2025, at the age of 83. A woman of tremendous faith, she made a lasting impact on those she knew for years or for days. A service to honor her memory will be at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 13, 2025, in the Chapel at Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey Funeral Home in Waco, Texas. Visitation with the family will take place prior to the service.

Rita was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on November 26, 1942, the youngest of five children to Lucille and Davis James “Jerry” Southerland. She was a sweet but precocious little girl who joined the Brownies for the refreshments and was dutifully kicked out after she and her best friend pushed the group leader’s daughter into freshly laid cement at the Pink Palace museum. She graduated from Central High School in Memphis and attended the University of Tennessee, where she was a member of the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority. 

Rita married her true love, James A. Harrison, on Thanksgiving Day in 1962. They were to travel to the Natchez Trace Parkway for a honeymoon, but Rita was sad to miss time with her family who were in town, so they turned around. She always smiled when telling this story and said Jim did not mind a bit! Family was so important to her and she loved the time she could spend with her brothers and sisters and her nieces and nephews. 

When Jim passed away suddenly in 1974, she was only thirty-one years old and her life’s focus became being a loving and nurturing mother to their three girls. She and her daughters moved to the wonderful and caring community of Fisherville, Tennessee, in the fall of 1978. They joined the First Baptist Church there and made life-long friends who became like family. She would joke that they were there every time the doors were open – and they were open a lot! Rita played softball, gardened, taught Sunday School and provided a beautiful childhood for her daughters.

In 1980, she became a grandmother and that role only brought her more joy each time she welcomed a new grandchild. Whether she was “RiRi” to her grandsons or “Grandmother” to her granddaughter, it was one of the most precious words she could hear.

In 1986, following the death of her father, she met a charming gentleman at a support group at Briarcrest Baptist Church in Memphis. Not too long after, she and Edwin Miles Standefer, Jr. were quietly married in the pastor’s study at First Baptist Church in Fisherville. They had a wonderful companionship for a brief time until he passed away in 1987.

Rita and her siblings fell in love with the beauty of the Rocky Mountains and took many, many trips to Colorado. Her adventurous spirit and love of God’s majestic mountain landscape led her to move to the tiny hamlet of Beulah, Colorado, in 1988. Once again, she had the opportunity to make wonderful new friends and host her family for summer and winter getaways. She was an avid photographer and took professional-quality photos of the mountains and magnificent wildflowers during her often daring hikes. It only got better when her sister and brother-in-law bought a home just around the corner from her. Their special bond only deepened.

Ever the free-spirited type, Rita made another significant move in May of 2007 to Waco, Texas, where she remained until her death. There was a certain little blond-haired girl who had won over her heart. She still hiked, but it was in Cameron Park, and she still camped, but it was in her backyard with her granddaughter, and, often, her friends. There was a group of little girls in Waco who loved her and knew time at Miss Rita’s house would always be an adventure.

Fortunately, she kept her roots to Colorado quite firm as she would take yearly summer vacations in the mountains each summer with her brother and his family. They were often joined by her sister and her family. Aunt Rita was quite popular with her great nieces and nephews. On these trips, they would entertain the entire group with an original production, usually based on the childhood shenanigans of Rita and her best friend. The children would write the play and then charge the adults to see it and pay for the treats they had bought!

In Waco, Rita was involved in Columbus Avenue Baptist Church and its ministries. She made deliveries for Meals on Wheels for both people and pets and cherished visiting with the homebound ladies she saw each week. She joined the CABC Faith-Agape Sunday School Class and Newcomers and Neighbors of Waco. She made so many special friends in both groups who brought her such delight. They were faithful supporters of the Baylor University women’s basketball team and always found a reason to have a good time and a great meal together.

It cannot be said enough how much Rita loved and was loved by her daughters. They had such a joyful household full of music, especially Elvis and Willie Nelson, Tennessee football games, delicious Southern cooking, and, most importantly, the knowledge of her love. Her home was always open to their friends, and they knew it was a place they were welcome.

Rita is survived by her daughters, Tammy Hughes of Coffeeville, Miss.; Viki Harrison of Rio Rancho, N.M; and Denise McClinton and her husband, Matt, of Waco, Texas, who had the privilege of her selfless devotion to them.

She is also survived by her grandchildren, Roman Cohea (Phon), Josh Cohea (Kyuri), Zachary Cohea, Taylor Cohea, Lucy McClinton, and Kat Cohea; her siblings Hal Southerland and his wife, Margaret; her sister, Patricia Clements and her husband, Talmadge; her many nieces and nephews, who all loved her and her love for college football; her great nieces and nephews; her goddaughter, Destin Fisher, and her husband Ed; her many special friends; and her ever-present protector and comforter, her cat, P.J.

She is preceded in death by her parents; her sister, Jerry Jean Tedder; and her brother, Davis James Southerland, Jr.

Memorials can be made to the Project Treasured Tails program through Meals on Wheels Waco at mowwaco.org.

The family invites you to leave a message or memory of Rita in her “Memorial Guestbook” at www.WHBfamily.com