Laura Lea Morris Lytle

August 28, 1937 - August 16, 2024

Laura Lea Morris Lytle peacefully passed away at the age of 86 years on August 16,2024, while in the presence of her loving family and close friends. She leaves a legacy of love, kindness, prayer and hard work centered around a deep faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and commitment to family.

She was born on August 28, 1937, in Van Buren AR and lived a simple MidAmerican life with almost Norman Rockwell overtones. She graduated from Maud high school in Oklahoma, married in 1957, lived in the Midwest for a short while before moving and living in south Texas and Louisiana and raising four children. Baton Rouge was home for her for the last fifty years.

She enjoyed nurturing gardens and plants and could make almost anything grow. She loved country cooking, making pan fried chicken and potatoes, baking Duncan Hines cakes, cookies from scratch or homemade apple pies and her favorite beverage of choice was Coca Cola. She held various administrative careers which began for her out of high school at Tinker Air Force Base, and then most notably as a medical transcriber for Woman's Hospital in Baton Rouge.

Music was one of her greatest interests and from a young age, she mastered the piano and clarinet. She was drum major and majorette for her high school band. She shared her love of music by investing in teaching young children the musical arts and built a legacy by helping others to understand music theory and playing the piano. Anyone who ever walked up to her home could always hear the piano echoing her favorite tunes through the windows and doors because she spent so much time at the keys - and many times, they'd have to knock twice before she stopped to welcome them inside. Laura was a devoted member of the Lafayette Concert Band for many years and served the community with a heart of joy over many productions and programs. She and her sister, Billye, started a group called "Classy Clarinets" and performed special Christmas seasonal programs in the Lafayette area, as well as opening performances for the Lafayette Concert Band. For a time, she played the organ for First Baptist Church in Carencro LA. Her heart always overflowed as she witnessed her grandchildren and great grandchildren develop and show their extensive musical talents from her legacy.

Her bold spirit led her to embark on becoming a skilled 18-wheel truck driver, where she was able to stand equally as a woman in a predominantly male industry. She was very successful and praised on multiple occasions for her ability to 'thread the needle' of driving tankers safely in tight tolerances inside petro-chemical plants. She was very proud to have driven tanker hauls across the county and was able to see the roads and sites in many different American states. She used her experience to later close out her career within the dispatching and operations center for DSI/TriMac Transportation in Geismar, LA. She often expressed great satisfaction and joy for this part of her life, and happiness in the long-time friends she made in this time of her life who remained steadfast even into her final days.

Her industrious mind was always working, and the most notable example of this trait was how she spent great amounts of time doing family historian research long before easy internet access and DNA/Family Tree services were even available. She would research through civic and library records to help family members not only know the names and places of previous family members, but also to add any stories or ties of their names to historic events, great and small. She became sought after by many, as others saw her work and what she could do to fill in historical family gaps. And she would never charge a dime because the love and satisfaction of fulfilling the need for family knowledge was enough for her. 

She was a beloved daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother and friend.

She was preceded in death by parents William Drush Morris and Armalea Weed Morris, Son James Thomas Lytle, brother Charles Vernard Morris, step-grandson Joshua Colt Manning, former husband of 30 years Dewey Irving Lytle and 9 brothers-in-law and 1 sister-in-law.

She is survived by her children and their spouses Dennis Andre Lytle (wife Ramona), Brian Christopher Lytle (wife Heather), Kimberly Denise Lytle Manning (husband Michael), her beloved sister Billie Maire Morris Lajaunie (husband Michael), daughter-in-law Amy Louise Rackley Lytle. Her nine grandchildren Lindsey Lytle March, Megan Lytle Daigle, Laura Lytle Beck, Jeff Lytle, Sierra Louise Lytle, Scott Anthony Weber II, Ashlye Manning, Katie Lytle and Brian Christopher Lytle Jr will cherish special shared moments and indelible memories they created. She was able to build wonderful memories with her six great grandchildren: (Brayden March, Connor March, Tyler March, Zoe Daigle, Aubrey Daigle and Ethan Daigle) which include times of laughter and pancakes at her favorite Cracker Barrel or the time she decorated her car like a reindeer, dressed up like Santa and showed up with her car stuffed and overflowing with Christmas gifts and belting out holiday songs across the neighborhood.

Laura will always be renowned as a loving and loyal woman who always gave to family, friends and others, ensuring that she would be the last to be served. She was a faithful and devoted Christian who sought to serve the Lord with all her heart, mind and soul and fervently prayed for anyone on her prayer list and God's kingdom in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. She will be missed on this earth until we join her happily in Heaven.