Stella Hope (Anderson) Fail passed away peacefully Wednesday, January 23rd, 2019 after a three-week battle with systemic infection. Stella is survived by her sons, Keith Fail and Gregory Fail, and their respective life partners, Laraine Altun and Jayne Richardson. Stella was preceded in death by her husband of 57 years, Charlie Fail, who passed away October 29th, 2016.
Stella was born October 4, 1935, in Gainesville, Texas to Anna Marie Seyler and Thomas Lane Anderson; she had an older sister, Cathy Isdale, and a younger brother, Angus Anderson. When she was growing up, Stella loved riding her horse, Lady, up to the Red River and barrel racing in local rodeos. Stella’s talent for friendship began in high school, when she helped form a group of six girls who called themselves “The Rats” that became lifelong friends.
Stella attended Texas Women’s University, graduating in 1957 with a Bachelor of Science as a medical technologist. She went on to work in blood banking, managing the blood bank at Parkland Hospital in Dallas for several years. Stella’s lifetime love affair with Charlie Fail began when a mutual friend, Warren Jackson, introduced them; Dad was her “Charlie Brown” and she was his “little red-haired girl”.
They were married December 19, 1958. Stella and Charlie were true partners in every sense of the word. When they were married, Stella regularly prepared the same eight meals her mother had prepared for her father.
One day Charlie asked if they might have something different. This inspired their decision to learn gourmet cooking together, watching Julia Child on TV until they had mastered French cooking; they later added other cuisines as well. Stella and Charlie were consummate hosts, sharing their love of good food and wine with friends and family.
Cocktail hours, barbecues, and elegant dinner parties were all served with the same seemingly effortless grace. Stella was a loving mother to her sons, Keith and Greg. She and Charlie worked together to teach them to be responsible, respectful, and always considerate of others.
Stella made a beautiful home, tastefully decorated in the style of the magazine Southern Living and welcoming to the many guests who visited. She cared for her family as she also worked and supported Charlie in his homebuilding business. Keith remembers running through the supermarket as a child, trying to keep up with his mother as she raced and shopped.
Keith and Greg have fond memories of long family road trips, joyous holidays, and especially family dinners with wonderful meals every night. In later years, Stella and Charlie enjoyed traveling and meeting new people, visiting Ireland, Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Egypt, and places in between, until Charlie’s death in October 2016. After Dad’s death, Stella regularly got together with a group of “the girls” to play bridge, and attended water aerobics at the Finley Ewing Cardiovascular & Fitness Center, making friends everywhere she went.
Stella’s life centered on her love for Charlie, her sons, and her many friends. She created a gracious home, which she shared with so many through her delicious food and tremendous gift for hospitality. She will be deeply and dearly missed by her family, “Rat Sisters,” and friends.
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