Ramona Ellen Hunt

Ramona Ellen Hunt: A Life of Love, Learning, and Laughter

On Wednesday, May 28, 2025, Ramona Ellen Hunt, affectionately known as Mona, departed this world at the age of 80, returning to her Heavenly Father. Residing in Sugar Land, Texas, Mona lived a life rich with purpose, adventure, and boundless love.

Born in Mount Holly, New Jersey, on August 25, 1944, Mona was the daughter of Arthur John and Ellen (Morgan) Mamalis. A proud graduate of Lowell High in Massachusetts in 1962, she was a true trailblazer. Mona worked her way through Rivier College in Nashua, New Hampshire, where she majored in Education, becoming one of the first in her family to earn a college degree. She later earned a Master's from Lamar University. Throughout her life, she maintained a deep-seated belief that education was a key to freedom and empowerment. This belief wasn't just theoretical; she actively helped countless others pursue their own educational journeys.

Mona’s career as an educator spanned decades and states. From teaching in New England to Southeast Texas, she brought fierce dedication and a love of learning wherever she went. She found her calling teaching middles school Typing and Computer Literacy at West Orange Cove Consolidated School District, where she taught nearly three decades before her retirement in 2003.

Few people manage to combine their favorite things in life, but here again, Mona was the exception. Her love for education and travel made her an ideal candidate for volunteering with exchange student programs. The Hunt family hosted over a dozen foreign exchange students. Mona began to take on more and more responsibility with the program and was instrumental in bringing the world to Southeast Texas. After retiring from teaching, she worked full-time with foreign exchange programs. By 2008, she was in charge of the entire Southeast Region of the United States.

She lost the love of her life and best friend when Wynne passed away during the summer of 2005. A few months later, Mona invited her elderly sister-in-law, Maxine Smith, to live with her. They called themselves, “The Golden Girls of Tulane Road” and shared numerous good times, along with regular visits from Sheryl Myers, her former student and lifelong friend. Perhaps their wildest adventure was the 20-plus hour evacuation to Dallas before Hurricane Rita. They returned to find over 50% of the pines on her property destroyed. Mona faced this hardship head-on, becoming proficient with a chainsaw despite her petite frame.

Mona loved to dance. Whether it was the ballet classes or school dances of her youth, she enjoyed cutting a rug. She met Wynne while square dancing with the Merry Mixers. One of her favorite pastimes was 'torturing' Stephen as they two-stepped to George Strait around the house. Mona loved making new friends and met her dear friend, Johnny Waller, at the Jefferson County Dance Club. She always made time to dance.

In 2009, Mona faced yet another severe challenge. She suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage and was given a mere 50/50 chance to survive a week. Only 5% of these patients live past two years. Mona had to relearn many everyday skills, including eating, walking, and reading. Defying the odds with characteristic strength and grit, Mona went on to live another sixteen years—yet another chapter filled with continued love, family, and grace.

Even after her injuries, her spirit of adventure and fun personality persisted. She kept dancing with her friends in Southeast Texas. Mona took a memorable trip to Boston in 2012 to reconnect with cherished family and friends. She eventually stepped out of her comfort zone and moved to a Sugar Land memory care facility in 2013. Now living down the street from her two youngest grandchildren, Jackson and Kyler, she showered them with love and an endless supply of cookies. No matter what Stephen and Sonya told her, she always insisted the boys should have "just one more" cookie. Likely due to her generous nature and, perhaps, a touch of charming forgetfulness!

Despite requiring full-time memory care, Mona found ways to lead a fulfilling life. She created a walking club for residents who walked 50 miles in a calendar year and was a regular participant in facility field trips. Being so close to Stephen’s family was a treat for everyone. Jackson and Kyler enjoyed their regular visits with ‘Granny.’ Sonya took her on frequent salon trips to get their nails done. Mona developed some favorite Sugar Land restaurants and enjoyed visiting them often with friends and family.

Mona was so much more than a teacher; she was a beacon of support for everyone around her. She was an expert cook and baker, an expert cake decorator, the party planner, and a cherished life coach. She offered financial advice, coordinated and housed exchange students, advocated for scholarships, and served as a surrogate mother and marriage counselor to many. Her heart was so big, she even had a knack for "adopting" stray dogs whom she insisted had adopted her.

Even as her health declined, Mona continued to make an impact, supporting family members through difficult times and eagerly following the stories of scholarship recipients from The Morgan-Babcock and Wynne Hunt Scholarships, programs she helped establish. Her gentle spirit and sweet personality endeared her to all her caregivers.

A true wanderer, Mona explored the globe. She visited all 50 states and numerous countries. She met the King of Norway, cruised the majestic Rhine, rode elephants in Thailand, swam the Mediterranean Sea in Greece, savored tapas in Spain, famously kissed the Blarney Stone in Ireland, and had many more adventures. Each journey was a testament to her adventurous spirit.

Mona loved deeply and succeeded every day in making her corner of the world brighter. While we profoundly grieve the loss of her radiant smile and vibrant personality, we take immense comfort in knowing that she is now reunited with her beloved best friend and husband of 28 years, Wynne, praising the Lord in Glory.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Arthur and Ellen Mamalis; her brother, Arthur Mamalis Jr.; and her cherished husband, David Edward Wynne Hunt.

Mona's legacy lives on through her sister, Helene Wolfe; her sons and daughters-in-law, David Edward Wynne and Mikki, and Stephen Edward Wynne and Sonya, and Matthew Fails; her daughter and son-in-law, Julia and Jim Lake; her beloved grandchildren, Nathanael Hunt, Jeriah Hunt, Alexandria Hunt, Daniel Troutman, Luke Troutman, Michael Troutman, Jackson Hunt, and Kyler Hunt; and numerous dear family relations and friends adopted into the family.

A small graveside interment ceremony will be held Friday, July 18th at Autumn Oaks Memorial Park in McLewis Community at 5:00 PM.

Memorial Services will be held at 3:00 PM Saturday, July 19th at First Christian Church, Orange, TX. Officiating will be Chris Nilsson, Elder at Crossbridge Church in Sugar Land. A meal and celebration of Mona’s life will be held afterwards in the Fellowship Hall of First Christian Church.

In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests donations be made to causes close to Mona’s heart and reflective of her lifelong commitment to helping others rise through education.

• The Helene Morgan Babcock and Alfred Babcock Memorial Scholarship, PO Box 24, Dunstable, MA 01827
• Texas Exes - Scholarships, Attn: Accounting Department, P.O. Box 142309, Austin, TX 78714 (Please place "Wynne Hunt Scholarship" in the Check Memo)

Cremation will be held under the direction of Claybar Funeral Home in Orange.