03/21/2026
Wanda Lee (Lanier) Cannon passed away peacefully in her home holding hands with her devoted husband and daughter at 5:03 am on March 19, 2026.
Wanda was born to Willis and Mary Lanier (and Frank Bonura) on August 17, 1943, in Beaumont, Texas. She graduated from South Park High School in Beaumont in 1963.
She met the love of her life, Robert (Bob) Cannon, in passing during a brief hospital stay, and it was love at first sight for both of them. She said, “He came in to take out the trash and left with my heart!” After a whirlwind romance of 3 months, they got married on January 25, 1964. They welcomed their only child, Robbie, 4 years later.
Together, they spent many years moving around the US and Germany when Bob served in the US Army. Wanda served as a charter member of the “Camp Followers Association” for 20 years before settling in Shelbyville, Texas, when he retired. She often joked that “home is wherever the Army sends you” but to Wanda, home was wherever Bob was.
After Bob retired, she got her favorite job as “Nana” and never stopped spoiling her grandchildren and later, her great grandchildren. Bob joked that she went to work for Shelbyville ISD (computer aide) and Carthage ISD (library aide) so that she would never have to tell any of them “NO” when they wanted something.
After double retirement, Bob and Wanda built a home in Gary, Texas. She enjoyed her golden years on Lake Murvaul, spending her days boating, fishing, bird watching, reading, working in her flower beds, playing cards and Bunco with friends, spoiling her dog “Baby,” and assembling every jigsaw puzzle she could get her hands on. She loved cooking for people, and thankfully, she taught her special recipes to her granddaughter, Rachel, and a select few other family members.
In recent years, they moved to Center to be closer to Robbie and her husband, Pete. Wanda discovered fairly quickly that if she would put some puzzle pieces in the wrong spots, she could call on Robbie for help with a puzzle “emergency” and Robbie would drop everything to come help her straighten it out. They snuck in many hours of puzzle time that way, and for a while they thought they had Pete fooled, but he always knew what they were doing! Mother and daughter enjoyed a lot of puzzle time together, and puzzles may never be the same again for Robbie.
Wanda loved her family, her friends, and her Lord, and she will be missed by family and friends located all over the US.
She is survived by:
Loving husband, Bob
Devoted daughter, Robbie (Pete) Low of Center
Grandchildren:
Bobby (Gasannia) Jones of Center
Rachel (Bruce) Collins of Rogers City, MI
Christopher Caudle of New York, NY
Great-grandchildren:
Emmet Collins of Michigan
John Collins of Michigan
Gracie Boles of Center
William Boles of Center
Plus many cousins, nieces, and nephews.
Wanda was preceded in death by her parents, Willis and Mary Lanier and biological father Frank Bonura; brother, Charles Edward “Sonnie” Lanier; sister, Betty Jo Moore; as well as brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, plus her half-siblings on the Bonura side of her family.
Friends are invited for visitation at 7pm on Saturday, March 21, 2026, at Watson and Sons Funeral Home in Center, Texas. Funeral service will be conducted by Andrew King at 2 pm on Sunday, March 22nd (same location) with burial to follow at Cannon Cemetery in Shelbyville, Texas.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you please consider making a memorial contribution to one of the following charities:
Community Benevolence Fund of Affinity Hospice
℅ 2708 S. Medford Drive
Lufkin TX 75901
Happy Tails Adoption Center
PO Box 1049
Center TX 75935
Venmo: @happytailstexas
Online condolences and tributes can be sent to www.watsonandsonsfh.com.
