Mignon Kells

Mignon Riedel Kells passed away on August 25, 2023, while in hospice care, following a several years-long battle with chronic illness.

Mignon was born on August 22, 1931 in Runge, TX to Herbert Moritz Riedel and Hazel Fortner Riedel. She, along with her parents and siblings (Glen† - July 20, 2022, Larry† - April 28, 2012, and Rita) moved to Victoria, TX then to Houston, TX and ultimately to Fort Worth, TX where she graduated from Polytechnic High School.

She met Byrle Mervin Kells and they married on May 8, 1954. They had two sons, Chad and Darren, and moved to Kansas for a short time before beginning to travel the world as a family; owing primarily to Byrle’s career in instrumentation, piping, and pipeline construction in the petroleum industry. They lived in numerous countries all over the world (and several continents) including: Europe, Singapore, Korea, Malaysia, Venezuela and several states in the United States, just to name a few.
As Chad and Darren entered their teenage years, Mignon and Byrle bought a home in Hurst, TX which ultimately became their “home base”- allowing the boys to attend Junior High and High School here in the U.S. After her sons were grown, she once again resumed traveling with Byrle to jobs in Trinidad and then to California.

Mignon was a woman of many varied hobbies, including but not limited to: playing dominos and cards with friends and family, sewing, gardening, reading, drawing, oil painting, and doing crossword puzzles.
Mignon also loved spending time with her grandchildren, Travis and Shannon, and they loved spending time with her as well. As soon as they were born, her skills as a fine seamstress became evident as she created some of the most beautiful clothing and costumes for them both. These outfits were better in both quality and design than clothes you could find in the stores, without question. She made it a point to spend every Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter holidays with her family making those holidays extra special. Her homemade chocolate and lemon meringue pies stole the show at every family holiday meal.

After Byrle passed in 1995, Mignon continued to stay deeply involved in the lives of her children and grandchildren. She remained in her home in Hurst, TX with her son Chad and his wife Missy. She also enjoyed travelling with Darren and his family to various places for family vacations, including Florida and Hawaii – where she still managed to surprise everyone with her joie de vivre.

During her time on this earthly plane, Mignon also attended both of her grandchildren’s weddings and was even able to hold her first great grandchild, Lucas, before she passed into eternal life.

She is survived by: her sister Rita McCudden of Benbrook, TX, her son Darren Kells and his wife Anne of North Richland Hills, TX, and her son Chad Kells of Hurst, TX. She is also survived by her grandson Travis Kells and his wife Karyn of Watauga, TX, and her granddaughter Shannon Kells Hanvey with her husband Jon and their son Lucas Hanvey of Texarkana, TX.