Cathy Janelle McKinney Bittancourt

Cathy Janelle McKinney Bittancourt, 49, of Rosenberg passed away on Wednesday, July 25, 2007 at her home with family members surrounding her, along with Hospice nurse Joe Hochman. Born December 28, 1957 in Jonesboro, Arkansas, she traveled throughout childhood as part of a military family, and attended Arkansas State University in Jonesboro. She moved to Houston in 1980 with her family. Through the years, she was active in Scouting, and was the Executive Director of Helping Hands in Richmond for several years and The Herald-Coaster in the production department and as an advertising representative. More recently, she worked for Pam Adair State Farm Insurance. She had been active in the Twin Cities Bowling League and helped the Guzzlin’ Gourmet cook-off team on occasion. She also served on committees at the Fort Bend County Fair. Preceded in death by her grandparents and an infant grandson, Andrew Bittancourt, she is survived by her sons, Jeff Bittancourt, of Rosenberg; and James and Jason Bittancourt, both of Savage, Minnesota; her parents, James and Martha McKinney of Jonesboro, Arkansas; her sister, Letitia Thomas of Weiner, Arkansas; her nephews, Stephen Henderson of Fort Benning, Georgia and Russ Henderson of Fort Campbell, Kentucky; her nieces, Danielle Long, of Jonesboro and Shaena Thomas, of Weiner. She is also survived by Alan Bittancourt of Minnesota, the father of her sons, and a host of friends throughout Fort Bend County. Services will be held at 1:00 pm Monday, July 30, 2007 at First Baptist Church in Richmond with the Rev. Harvey Bongers of Cypress, former pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church Rosenberg officiating. Visitation will be held beginning at 11:00 am at the church. Burial will follow at Davis Greenlawn Cemetery.

She was a blessing to know and shared many joys,
She nurtured her friends, her family, and her boys.
Family trips gave her stories to tell-
Never too candid to folks she knew well.
If she saw you around town, she would say “Hi”,
And was always there for a laugh or a cry.
She never was too quick to judge,
But when she made up her mind, she wouldn’t budge.
She moved through life without any fear,
And her spirits stayed high ‘tho the end was near.
While we’re left here, her true journey starts.
She will be missed, and is forever in our hearts.
--From her sons

In lieu of flowers, the family requests any memorial donations be made to Houston Hospice of El Campo.