Obituary: Lelia "Lela" Rouse

Lelia “Lela” Rouse, 81, passed away on Wednesday, May 3, 2023, at UNC Lenoir Health Care.

The funeral service will be conducted Monday, May 8, 2023, at 11am at Edwards Funeral Home. Burial will follow in the Wiley Rouse Cemetery. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the funeral home.

Lelia (who preferred to be called Lela) was born May 27, 1941, to Roy H. Bills Jr. and Elaine Saucier in Biloxi, Mississippi. She attended Biloxi High School. In Biloxi, she met her husband, Luby Eric Rouse, who was stationed at Keesler Air Force Base. After Luby was discharged from service, they moved along with their son, Jack Joseph Rouse, to Moss Hill, North Carolina to live near Luby’s parents. Later they were joined by Lela’s mother, Elaine, who was in recovery from addiction. Luby was disabled by his experiences in the military, and Lela went to work to supplement the family income. She trained at Lenoir Community College for business work. She worked in a number of positions over the years, including manufacturing, clerical, and healthcare jobs. She was the first female molding machine operator at West Pharmaceutical.

Lela’s life-long interest was art, and she returned to Lenoir Community College for their art program. She loved color and design. Later she attended the art program at East Carolina University with intentions of teaching. Although she never taught, the art provided her solace. In Lela’s final years, she lived at Spring Arbor of Kinston. There she took up macramé and enjoyed drawing. Declining eyesight and mobility took its toll, however, limiting her activities at the end of her life.

She is survived by her son, Jack Joseph Rouse.

She is preceded in death by her husband, Luby Eric Rouse; and her half-sister, Lynn Holden.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Glaucoma Foundation.

Arrangements by Edwards Funeral Home & Cremations. Online condolences may be expressed at www.edwardsfhc.com.