PIXLEY, Waneta Ruth (Dutton), of Seminole passed away peacefully at the Hospice Care Center in Pinellas Park, Florida on July 15, 2023, at the age of 89.
Waneta was born in Allegany, NY on February 22, 1934, the daughter of Albert and Louise Dutton. She was one of 12 children. At the age of 18, she married the love of her life, Howard Pixley. By the time they were 23 and 24 years old, they already had all 6 of their children. After living in Allegany, NY for most of their lives, they packed up their children and moved to Seminole, Florida where they bought their home where they lived for 54 years.
Waneta always worked very hard to provide for her family. In Allegany, she had her own beauty salon in her home so she could work and still be there for her children. At the same time, she worked assembling electrical products at Acme Electric in Olean, NY. When the family moved to Florida, she followed in the footsteps of all 4 of her daughters and became a waitress at Steak ‘n Shake in Clearwater. She was a very conscientious, hard worker and was extremely good at her job. She had an incredible work ethic, and all her customers loved her.
Eventually, she was offered an opportunity to work at Honeywell Aerospace as an Airplane Guidance System Technician. She excelled at her job. She worked endless hours to prove to herself and management that she deserved to be working there. She received several awards and accolades over the years for her tireless work and her dedication to her job. All her colleagues loved and respected her, as did her family and friends.
Howard and Waneta loved to travel. They had many motorhomes over the years, and they traveled all over the country attending Nascar races with friends and family. Several of their children had motorhomes so they were fortunate enough to travel with their parents and share incredible adventures with them. They will cherish those memories forever.
The most important thing to Waneta was always her family. Her hard work, dedication and sacrifice provided a wonderful life for her children. She was strong, kind, compassionate, loving and had a wonderful sense of humor. She will be deeply missed by her family and friends.
Waneta and Howard were married for 70 years until he passed away on April 2, 2023. It gives her family great comfort to know that they are reunited once again in heaven. Waneta is survived by her sons, Michael (Jane) Pixley, Daniel (Debra) Pixley, daughters, Linda (Bogie) Winstead, Bonnie Baggett, Sharon (Corky) Markwart and Cathy Holcomb, as well as 12 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren.
A joint Celebration of Life for Waneta and Howard will be held on August 13, 2023, from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm at Bayou Club at 7979 Bayou Club Boulevard, Largo, FL 33777. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Suncoast Hospice at https://suncoasthospicefoundation.org/ways-to-give/
Thinking of all of you during this difficult time. So sorry. Uncle Howard and Aunt Waneta were 2 of my favorite’s growing up in Allegany.