It is with saddened hearts we announce the passing of Erma Jean Elenbaas on Saturday, 25 July 2026. Erma Jean passed away peacefully at the age of 87 surrounded by her family at home in West Columbia, Texas.
Erma Jean Rountree was born on March 15, 1939, in Louise, Mississippi, to Jesse Malcolm and Vera Iona Rountree. Erma Jean grew up in the Mississippi Delta where Jesse Malcolm was a Plantation Manager for Smith Farms Plantation. Vera was a cook and served meals in the cafeteria at Louise High School until it closed. Erma Jean graduated from Louise High School in 1957 and went on to graduate from Delta State University in 1961 with her bachelor’s degree in education. She completed her master’s degree at Mississippi College and was also a certified Christian Counselor. Erma Jean was a lifelong teacher of children for over 50 years, mostly grades 4-6. She married Jim Elenbaas on 22 July 2012, and they have lived in West Columbia, TX for over 15 years. Jim and Erma Jean are very well-known within the West Columbia community as local ‘beacons of light’ for teaching God’s word and passionate in the sending of thousands of boxes for Operation Christmas Child to families in need.
Erma Jean was preceded in death by her parents, Jesse Malcolm and Vera Iona Rountree, and her sisters Barbara Ann McCall and Ella Faye Arnold. She is survived by her husband Jim Elenbaas, her three children, Jennifer Ford, Malcolm “Mack” Martin and Kathy Hickey and husband Frank Hickey, her 10 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren.
Memorial services will be held on 12 September 2026, with ceremony starting at 1:00 PM CST, at the Grace Baptist Church of Wild Peach, 5050 County Road 353, Brazoria, Texas 77422. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Operation Christmas Child effort at Grace Baptist Church.
Always uplifting and supportive, Erma Jean’s favorite response to so many aspects of life, “God’s got this!”.
John 14:6 (KJV): “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”