(Seguin) – Prior to her passing in February of 2022, 107-year-old Virginia King Bergfeld Woods was already setting into motion a plan to leave behind a gift that not only paid homage to her family’s history, but to the history of Seguin. As a result and in lieu of a traditional funeral, Woods’ family this weekend will be hosting a Memorial Open House of her historic home located at 920 E. Court St.
Sharing a bit more behind her mother’s wishes is Janice Woods Windle, Seguin native and author of the best-selling book “True Women.” The novel, later turned into a CBS TV miniseries, tells the story of her family’s lineage in Texas, the Kings, and the Woods. Windle says it was her mom’s loyalty to her family’s deep history – a history that helped shape Seguin — that she believes drove her to share it with everyone.
“When she was 107 years old last year, I asked her what kind of a service would she like and she laughed and said, ‘None. How about kind of a party? I think I would like the house to be open and have people come and see it and feel like it belongs to everybody’ and she said ‘No long prayers. No long poems. No dissertations read. No letters to the dead.’ She had a long list of no, don’t do it. But when she talked about it, she said just a come and go time where people can come in and see the things we have,” said Windle.
Among those “things” will be storyboards filled with photos taken over the decades, Windle says the boards will be posted throughout the home for folks to read, enjoy, and maybe even to identify.
“My mother Virginia King Bergfeld Woods grew up in this house and the house had belonged to her great grandparents and the land under the house was originally a log cabin and then later, they built a farmhouse and then later, they went to the World’s Fair and saw the beautiful columns which they put on the porch. So, the house has always followed the history of Seguin and the people who were here had been an active part of the development of the town and so my mom saved everything. She saved all of the antiques, all of the photographs, everything relevant to our local history,” said Windle.
Much of what has been preserved today throughout the city can be attributed to Woods’s historical record-keeping and preservation efforts. Founder of the Seguin Conservation Society, Wood’s career as a history teacher only solidified her continuing contributions to the community. Windle says it’s no surprise that her mother wanted folks to come together again in celebration of the city she loved so much.
“Mom taught school at Mary B. Erskine School and several other schools for almost 35 years and then she was on the school board for five different terms – she was elected to. So, she had a keen interest in seeing people educated and people coming together,” said Windle.
Woods was married to the late Wilton George Woods. Together, they had two children, Janice Woods Windle and Wilton Woods.
This weekend’s Memorial Open House will be held Saturday and Sunday from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m., Rain or shine, the event will be held on a come-and-go-basis. Guests are asked to park along the streets surrounding the property. Access to the back of the home will also be made available.