Ola Massengale

Ola Mary Baines Massengale, 98 years of age, passed away on Sunday, June 3, 2018 at Bradfield Place Assisted Living.

Ola was born in November 14, 1919 in Frierson, Louisiana to Tom and Charity Mitchell Baines.  She was the youngest of four children. Her parents and brothers, Oliver, Tom and Henry preceded her in death.  Ola finished school in DeSoto Parish. In 1936, she went on to Grambling College, where at age 17 received her teaching degree.

On her first teaching job in DeSoto Parish, she met Burrell Grant Ford.  They were married, December 25, 1938. This union produced three children - Oliver Conrad, Burrell, Jr. and daughter, Vernie Lynne.

Ola moved to Oakland and started her business pursuits. She and second husband Frank Butler Guest met in 1948. They purchased an apartment building that also housed a small café. Their only daughter, Frankie Cheryl was born May 25, 1949 in Oakland, CA.  The next few years were very prosperous for Ola as she acquired several rental properties in addition to her existing apartment/café building.

Her third husband, Weston Benford Massengale was a maintenance supervisor for Alameda County School District. They met in 1955 and married in 1959 in San Luis Obispo, CA.  Their marriage produced one child, Cedric David Massengale.

In 1991, Ola closed her café and moved to Reno, Nevada where she lived with her daughter, Frankie. After Frankie passed in 2011, Ola moved to Dallas, Texas under the care of her niece, Charity Smith.  Ola was the oldest member of her beloved Greater Macedonia Primitive Baptist Church.  As her health declined, she couldn’t attend church often. But she remained devoted to studying the bible, attending church services at Bradfield Place and was fond of watching Trinity Broadcast Network daily.  She also loved watching sports such as baseball, tennis, and golf.  She made many friends at Bradfield Place where she enjoyed jigsaw puzzles, trivia games and Bingo.

Three of Ola’s children, Oliver Conrad, Cedric, and Frankie Cheryl preceded her in death. Ola leaves to cherish her loving memory, devoted Niece Charity Smith (Dallas) children, Burrell Jr.  and Vernie Lynne, a host of nieces, nephews, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, other relatives, and friends.