Our world has lost a lovely soul, and heaven has welcomed a saint. Nieva Icasiano Barrs was the wife of the late Theodore Roosevelt Barrs Jr, beloved mother of thirteen, grandmother of 27, great-grandmother of 15. She was a woman of deep faith, good humor and tremendous resilience. She passed away in Webster, Texas on February 16, 2018 after a brief illness.

One of twelve children, “Evi” was born in 1931 in Manila, Philippines to Mariano Icasiano and Concepcion Manalac Icasiano. After surviving World War 2, she fell in love with Theodore, who was stationed in the Philippines with the Army Air Corps. They married six years later, and moved to San Francisco and started their family, who are truly grateful for the legacy of love their parents created.

Evi lost the love of her life when she was widowed at age 44. With seven children still at home, she had to learn to drive and serve as both parents. To help support the family, she worked as a nanny for the Moran family of Oklahoma City.

Nieva is survived by her children Ray, Ted, Chuck, Maria Lynn, James, Hilda Icasiana, Patricia, Greg, Cecilia, Michael, Maria and their families. She lost two children, Teresa in 1958 and Fred in 2002. She is also survived by her sister, Maria Redhouse of Tucson, AZ, and her brother, Pacifico Icasiano of Sacramento, CA.

Visitation will be at 5:00 pm Wednesday, followed by the Rosary at 6:00 pm, at Malloy & Son Funeral Home, 3028 Broadway, Galveston. Mass in her memory will be held at St. Patrick’s in Galveston at 11:00 am Thursday.

Nieva will be laid to rest next to Theodore and their son Fred at 12:00 pm at Resurrection Cemetery in Oklahoma City, in a pine casket hand-built by her sons. She asked that rather than flowers, donations be made to help build tiny memorial chapels in the Philippines. (Salesian Missions Memorial Chapel Dept., 2 LeFevre Lane, New Rochelle NY 10801 salesianmissions.org)