Connie Bullock Royal

A Funeral Mass for Connie Bullock Royal will be held Wednesday, July 10, 2024, at 12:00 PM at Saint Patrick Catholic Church, with Father Augustine Palimattam officiating. Inurnment will follow in the Columbarium of Saint Patrick Catholic Church. Visitation will be one hour prior to the Funeral Mass at the church.

Robert Barham Family Funeral Home is honored to be entrusted with the funeral arrangements.

Connie Royal, age 72, of Merdian, MS, passed away peacefully with family by her side Saturday, July 6th, 2024, at Baptist Anderson Regional Medical Center.

Connie graduated from Meridian High School in 1969. She was voted most beautiful in her sophomore year, and she was a Phi Kappa little sister and a member of the Dusty social club.

When Monte met Connie it truly was love at first sight, and they built a beautiful life together. The love and partnership they shared is a legacy that will always inspire us.

Connie gave so much time to her community. She served on church committees and taught religious education. She was PTA President of Lamar Elementary and Dusty Lifetime Mom. She served on the Symphony Board, the Meridian Arts Council, and as Meridian Little Theatre Guild President just to name a few.

She served on nearly every arts-related board in town at some point, a fact that made her the perfect choice for Cultural Arts Coordinator of the City of Meridian. In that role she was responsible for the city’s Christmas decorations, festival logistics, cultural grant writing and all city special events. She held that position for several years until she was promoted to Community Development Department Head, becoming the first female department head in the city’s history. She was instrumental in the development of places we enjoy today like the Riley Center, the Max, the agricultural center and the Three-Foot Building.

In addition to those achievements, she was the best wife and mother any of us could have imagined. She enjoyed being a member of Dig and Dream, and she loved sewing, reading, theatre and football. She was a devout Catholic, and she shepherded so many friends through their cancer journeys with her own special blend of practicality and spirituality.

She was also a fabulous hostess who artfully coordinated many showers, dances, cast parties, class sleepovers and Dusty meetings. She was our matriarch, and we will all miss her beyond measure. To paraphrase John Barlow, our landscape will be empty since she has gone.

She is survived by her husband of 54 years, Monte Royal, daughters; Kimberley Royal Gibson (Todd) and Erin Royal Anderson (Tony), grandchildren; Davis Gibson, Bennett Gibson and Irene Anderson, and many nieces and nephews whom she loved dearly.

She was preceded in death by her parents Nelson and Axeth Bullock, brothers; John Bullock, Bob Bullock, and David Bullock, and one sister, Dale Bullock McCarra.

Online condolences may be expressed at robertbarhamffh.com.

In lieu of flowers the family suggests memorial donations be made to The American Cancer Society or Saint Patrick Catholic Church.