Gus "Cudlum" Werner Jr., 84, of Hallettsville, passed away October 30, 2009. He was born on June 20, 1925 to Gus & Rosa Kunze Werner Sr. in Hallettsville, Texas. He married Lucille Leopold Werner on April 22, 1949 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church of Hallettsville. He joined the US Army during WWII at the age of 18, served in the 211 Field Artillery Battalion in Germany, and was discharged on March 28, 1946. He was a member of Knights of Columbus, V.F.W., American Legion, and Sacred Heart Catholic Church.

Cudlum loved anything to do with the outdoors, sports, hunting, fishing, etc. He kept his family well fed on such delights as deer, wildhogs, rabbit, squirrel, froglegs, soft shell turtles, doves, fish and even rattlesnakes. He passed his love for the outdoors and cooking on to all his children. One of his greatest pleasures was sharing a drink with Lucille the love of his life every evening at his shop.

Cudlum's grandchildren and great grandchildren brought him much joy, the Astros brought him much sorrow, and Lucille made him the luckiest man alive.

Cudlum is survived by: his wife Lucille of 60 years; sons, James Werner of Hallettsville, Gus Werner & wife Susan of Hallettsville, and Joey Werner & wife Tracy of Lakeway; daughters, Carol Ley of Hallettsville, Diane Charrier of Lockhart, Mary Chapman & husband Andy of Hallettsville, and Audrey Klimichek & husband Travis of Hallettsville; sister La Rose Svab of Hallettsville; 17 grandchildren, Jennifer Atkinson, Ashley Bludau, Charlie Bludau, Chans Chapman, Will Chapman, Leslie Jansky, Jason Werner, Jessica Werner, Whitney Werner, Tyler Werner, Siena Werner, Maya Werner, Jeff Ahrens, Joe Charrier, Megan Klimitchek, Amanda Klimitchek, and Carl Travis Klimitchek; step grandchild David Janese; and 9 great grandchildren, Lily Atkinson, Jakob Atkinson, Jacy Chapman, Reese Chapman, Laila Chapman, Caine Chapman, Connor Jansky, Wyatt Leopold, and Lane Leopold.

Cudlum was preceded in death by: his parents; and 2 brothers, Carlwin and Milton Werner.

Funeral Mass: 3 pm, Monday, Nov. 2, 2009 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Visitation: 3 pm, Sunday, at Kubena Funeral Home. Rosary: 7 pm, Sunday at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Officiate: Rev. John Peters. Pallbearers: Jeff Ahrens, Chans Chapman, Will Chapman, Jason Werner, Carl Travis Klimitchek, Tyler Werner, Charlie Bludau, Joe Charrier, and David Janese. Memorials: Donor's Choice Burial: Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery.

Gus "Cudlum" Werner

"Oh Lordy", "Decisions, Decisions", "Wonder what the poor folks are doing?", "Get that meat outta the zink", "Awe Hell" . . . When you spent time around Dad, these were some of the colorful phrases you heard often.

Thanks for coming today to help us celebrate Dad's life. We feel fortunate to have you all here, just like we feel fortunate to have had dad for as long as we did. Everyone in our family has memorable stories they could tell you about him. He was the ultimate story teller with a colorful sense of humor. He had an infectious laugh. Once he started laughing, you couldn't help but to laugh along with him, even if you didn't know why.

Dad loved sports. He even had his own softball team when he was younger – "Cudlum's Hoodlums". He loved to watch his children and grandchildren play sports and always had suggestions for if we weren't playing the game right. He was a huge Oiler and Astros fan and had since become a big fan of the Texans. He wouldn't miss a game if it was on TV. But, if they got behind, he was quick to turn the TV off in disgust and vow he'd never watch them again. He usually got over if by the next game.

Dad was a great provider for his family. He worked hard to support a wife and seven children and always managed to pull off a great summer vacation every year. We grew up eating a lot of wild game that he brought home. I can't imagine how many unfortunate critters that attempted to cross farm road 530 that ended up on our dinner table. We ate a ton of venison backstrap, some of it was even legal. Regardless of how successful his hunting season was, he always seemed to have another deer tag left at the end of it. And a big deer to Cudlum, didn't necessarily mean it had any horns.

Dad loved food and loved to cook. He and his brother used to run a café here in Hallettesville call the "Dew Drop In". He always knew where the best restaurant was in any town he passed through. If he didn't, it wasn't uncommon for him to send one of us kids in to bring a menu out for him to check out before deciding whether he would park or not. His exotic cooking style led to us eating things like cowboy stew with mare gut, turtle soup, fried squirrel, mountain oysters, and fried brains to name a few. "It'd make a bulldog break his chain" is how dad referred to this kind of food. Whenever you talked to him on the phone, you always found out what he last ate and what he was planning to eat next.

Fishing. Dad loved to fish and loved to eat fish. He had a ton of fishing stories. His best one has him and his brother Carlwin, who was like a dad to him, fishing on the river. With utmost confidence, they bring only bait as they plan to eat whatever they catch. After a long dry run of no fish on their lines, their hungry bellies found them pulling their bait off of the lines to bring back to camp to fry.

Dad also loved music. His sister Larose has fond memories of him as a teenager strumming his guitar singing cowboy songs out in the washhouse. He had a keen ear for notes and tunes he appreciated. We've all had him sing "You're Cheatin Heart" to us in an animated fashion. "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" was also a favorite of his.

Dad liked to swim. He loved the water. We all have great memories of swimming with him at Sandies, Rockport, Sulphur Park, and Ritchie's River Bend, to name a few.

Bathrooms. Bathrooms were an important thing to dad. He seemed to have a real admiration for a well placed, clean toilet. He was especially fond of the new one here in the church.

Dad loved dominoes. Whether it was Straight, Moon, 42, or 84, Dad would sit at the table and ask, "How do you play this game?" Then, he'd proceed to beat the tar out of you.

Dad was never a big pet person, but he loved his dog Zorba. When Zorba died, Dad created a special resting place for him under a big oak tree out at his camp, Cudlum's Hideout. It's still marked with a cross. He named his next two dogs Zorba, but they never lived up to the name.

Speaking of Cudlum's Hideout, it truly was Dad's favorite getaway. It was an answer to a dream of having his own place to hunt and fish. He always said that if he died at camp, we could rest assured that he died happy.

When you asked Dad how he was doing, he'd often reply, "Everything's Lovely". Everything is lovely, Dad. You were a great husband, father, brother, grandfather, and great-grandfather. We'll cherish your stories and memories forever. You've lived a wonderful life, and now that you've got that laid by, it's time for you to rest. We love you and we'll miss.